ABSTRACT
Jammed Architectural Structures combine two mundane and largely available materials with complementary characteristics – gravel and string – into an effective load-bearing reversible material system for sustainable construction. The key to the construction of large-scale structures made of bulk matter is the controlled material distribution, defined and carried out through data flow from the algorithmically generated design to the robotically executed fabrication. String and aggregates are stacked in alternating horizontal layers. The design of the Rock Print Pavilion structure demonstrates the capacity of the presented design logic to integrate material-, fabrication-, and context-related parameters into a robotically fabricated, geometrically differentiated and structurally sound architectural artifact. The fiber-optic sensors were integrated horizontally at different height levels in every second column, strategically selected to monitor the global behavior of the structure.
