Beginners Samples

さてさて。RGB を Loop に取り込んで色を変えては遊んでいます。

v5Automation を探検するのがなかなか大変だったので、使えるサンプルをいくつかまとめておきます。

Some useful CATIA vba samples, since v5Automation was overwhelming for newbies like me.

-opening statement
-selection set /color change
-create measurable
-create parameter
-create function /relationship

Link to the samples. Hope it helps.

Pendulum Plane

卒業設計でお世話になったインストラクターの作品が完成。BH がコンサルティングしています。私は担当ではなかったけれども、構造事務所にいると sci-arc の先生や先輩と仕事をする機会があるのも楽しみのひとつです。

Aug/29 (Fri). Opening event for OylerWu Collaborative's Pendulum Plane at the LA Forum's new Gallery on Hollywood Blvd.

LA Forum hosted a competition in spring 2008 to design a display system for future exhibitions. In the open gallery space, 16 welded aluminum units are suspended from the ceiling and each allows wall and mid-room display by pivoting down hinged frames. If you grab one of the hanging frames, you can see the unit sway in counter-balance. In the network of aluminum, I liked the use of 2-inch and 1-inch diam pipes. This choice of material creates fine appearance.

Those complicated shapes are produced not by professional aluminum fabricators, but by the team of OylerWu Collaborative and sci-arc students. I was amazed at their level of craftsmanship once again since their previous exhbition, Density Field.


Pendulum Plane Working in Progress 01
Pendulum Plane Working in Progress 02

CATIA scripting

ここ一年くらいやるやる言っておいてようやく使えるようになった CATIA vba. Opening Statement やインターフェイスに慣れたり、という始めの一歩がいつもなかなか踏み出せないので、とにかく始められて嬉しいです。

...... が、やっていること自体はまだとても単純です。

Finally got hands on CATIA scripting. Most confusing thing about CATIA vba is the tree structure. Within Part Document only, CATIA has the following structure.

+-- PartDocument
+---- Part
+------ HybridShapeFactory
+-------- HybridBodies
+---------- HybridBody
+------------ HybridShapes
+-------------- HybridShape

And also, since CATIA has multiple ways to create a geometry,
"Dim ...... As ......" statements get a little tricky. Point Geometry for example, has 9 types including intersection point.

HybridShapePointBetween
HybridShapePointCenter
HybridShapePointCoord
HybridShapePointExplicit
HybridShapePointOnCurve
HybridShapePointOnPlane
HybridShapePointOnSurface
HybridShapePointTangent
HybridShapeInterSection

Anyway, a lot more to learn. I hope to post powerCopy script next time. What I have now is just CONTEXT of what I want to acheive.

Here is the link to the script tasks in order.
Here is the link to ONE MODULE (one of the tasks).

Voussoir Cloud

コンサルティングを傍で眺めながら私も CATIA model development に参加した Voussoir Cloud. 8/8 Fri のオープニング、BH でこの installation を担当したエンジニアも来ていて満足そうでした。次の sci-arc installation では CATIA 担当が私なので10月の完成が楽しみです。　

Current sci-arc exhibition Voussoir Cloud by IwamotoScott Architecture. Voussoirs means the wedge-shaped stones that form an arch or vaulted ceiling. It seems like that people's first reaction to the piece was "...but how ?" An arch or vault usually consists of compression taking materials. But the vaults of Voussoir Cloud are made up with paper-thin wood veneer, looking fragile enough not to take any compression forces. Going through various form finding simulations, Buro Happold optimized the geometric performance of the global surface so that the internal tension enables the surface to hold itself within the material property.

Here is the design process of each triangle shaped component.

Angle Optimization

Working on CATIA model for next installation by OylerWu Collaborative. This project is sequential to their previous two installations, Pendulum Plane, and Density Field. Their highly sculptural stairs with enormous wings -again, made out of aluminum pipes (1 inch diameter)- seems challenging enough to support its own weight, but it has to support live load this time.

Since the architects designed the form going through hundreds of itterations, I simply focused on angle optimization, rather than producing veriations. Their original form consists of totally unique angles, so I constrained series of angles that appear to be similar.

But... how much decimal-place-dead-on accuracy in idealized computer world matters if those aluminum pipes are cut, bent, welded by human hands ?

This optimazation is not ment for reducing construction tolerance to achieve perfection, but for the preparation of frameworks (jigs). At least some sets of angles are constrained to be same, fabricators (students) can produce templetes for identical bending.