Surface is a system for rapid generation and fabrication of unique wall tiles. Adjustment of script parameters creates a set of tiles, which were manufactured through casting with CNC created molds. Using a single algorithm, four unique surfaces were generated simply by changing parameters until the design intent was achieved. The surfaces were then milled on a CNC router and prepared for casting.
Final project for:
"Electronic Media: Physical Design Processes",
Fall 2007, Professor Jefferson Ellinger
The tiles were defined by five curves which were then lofted together to form the primary surface. Each curve had independent parameters, allowing detailed customization of the tile surface.
The script was written in Generative Components, a plugin for Microstation that uses C#.
The surfaces were then exported to Rhinoceros 3D and arranged, then exported again to Mastercam for toolpath generation. Milling was done on a TechnoCNC 3-axis router.
The unprimed milled surfaces were themselves aesthetically interesting, more than even the final HydroCal tiles. An interesting side effect of using polystyrene as a mold was the result of passing light through the tile molds, highlighting the dramatically differing thicknesses. Also, some surfaces had intriguing characteristics when viewed from either side.
The polystyrene molds were sealed using ordinary primer/sealant, and the tiles were then cast with HydroCal (yielding the best results), ballistics gel, Quickcrete, and Pourock.
Another material used was a homemade version of ballistics gel, essentially unflavored gelatine. This material proved particularly effective for very thin tiles as it has much greater tensile capability, at the expense of rigidity. It also was translucent, allowing for experiments with differing colorations and lighting effects, through the use of typical food coloring. Ballistics gel was chosen over more durable liquid plastics both due to the human-safe nature of the (completely edible) gel, as well as the relatively short-term nature of the project which could accommodate the short life span of the gel.
The next step in this project would be to further develop the script so that each tile could have consistency with those adjacent to it, and that all of the tiles could be exported straight to CAM, which could then be further automated to generate the toolpaths for potentially hundreds of unique tiles, all of which may be further explored in the future. Toolpath generation for this project was itself particularly labor intensive, owing to the odd form of the surfaces and the resulting interaction with the CAM software, requiring substantial effort to get proper toolpaths. Added automation of the CAM process would enable much quicker production, allowing for more time spent engaging in actual design.