May 8, 2015: DFL (1st year students) Mid-Term Review with Sponsor, Takenaka Corporation

On May 8, 1st year students in Digital Fabrication Lab (DFL) had their mid-term review, which was joined by this year's pavilion sponsor, Takenaka Corporation. We were also joined by collaborators Prof. Igarashi (computer science) and Prof. Sato (structural engineering), and there were lively and informative exchanges between all participants. The participants from Takenaka Corporation asked many pointed questions from pragmatic, construction-centric perspectives. Students will incorporate the points raised throughout the review into their final pavilion designs and proposals. 

From this point onwards, together with Igarashi-Lab, Sato-Lab, and Takenaka Corporation, we will select one direction, and 1st year students in DFL will work collectively on one pavilion project. Stay tuned for which pavilion will get built this year!

SPL Pavilion 2015 : First Mock-up

After several tests of small physical models and computational simulations, we tested a mock-up of the pavilion with carbon fiber rods. The pattern is first created in 2D and then pops up to a 3D form when anchor points are released.

DPL Competition Team Meeting with Prof. Kengo Kuma

Preparing preliminary design options

Volumetric Models

Meeting with Prof. Kuma at KKAA

Design kick off meeting with Prof. Kengo Kuma at KKAA Office.

We brought 8 preliminary design options to discuss with him.

Through the discussion we selected a few volumetric options to develop further.

SPL Pavilion 2015 Structural Test with Prof. Jun Sato

We received the material for the 2015 SPL Pavilion. The material is a carbon fiber rod from Komatsu Seiren. We tested the structural properties of the material with Prof. Jun Sato.

April 20th, 2015: Structural Engineering Lecture 03 by Professor Jun Sato, the University of Tokyo

Professor Jun Sato gave a comprehensive structures lecture for the first year students. He showed the students many renowned projects and experiments that has pushed the boundaries of structural engineering possibilities. 
After which, each student team conducted a bending moment test and Prof. Sato advised them on calculations, further tests, and possible improvements.
In the future, these collaborators and experts will join us as jury members to select the final design for this year's 2015 DFL research pavilion.

Arduino Workshop | Making "Smart Tools"

On April 10th, we had an Arduino workshop and invited Yuta Sugiura from Keio University. The goal of the workshop was to build "smart tools" in just an hour.

Arduino Introduction

Students making their own "smart tools"

Testing servos

Connecting cables

Mounting circuits on the "smart tool"

At the end of the workshop, we had presentations.

Interactive washing puff - it measures the distance between the machine and a wall. It also measures worker stress by measuring the loudness of workers' voices.

Smart spray for grafitti artists - this enables the painter to create a brush-like feeling by controlling the discharge rate (depending on the distance between the wall and the spray).

Smart detergent dispenser - it detects dirt by checking the brightness of the wall.

April 13th, 2015: Structural Engineering Lecture 02 by Mika Araki of Jun Sato Lab, the University of Tokyo

Mika Araki from Jun Sato Lab gave the first lecture in a lecture series on structural engineering for the first year students. She showed the students how to conduct various material tests, but focused on bending in this lecture. Each project has its own material properties relevant to design, and thus, it is important to listen and learn from the experts. In the future, these experts who we invite for lectures will join us as jury members to select the final design for this year's 2015 DFL research pavilion.