The book presents the proceedings of Rob/Arch 2016, the third international conference on robotic fabrication in architecture, art, and design. The work contains a wide range of contemporary topics, from methodologies for incorporating dynamic material feedback into existing fabrication processes, to novel interfaces for robotic programming, to new processes for large-scale automated construction. The latent argument behind this research is that the term ‘file-to-factory’ must not be a reductive celebration of expediency but instead a perpetual challenge to increase the quality of feedback between design, matter, and making.

This volume collects about 20 contributions on the topic of robotic construction methods. It is a proceedings volume of the robarch2012 symposium and workshop, which will take place in December 2012 in Vienna. Contributions will explore the current status quo in industry, science and practitioners. The symposium will be held as a biennial event. This book is to be the first of the series, comprising the current status of robotics in architecture, art and design.

The book presents research from Rob|Arch 2018, the fourth international conference on robotic fabrication in architecture, art, and design. In capturing the myriad of scientific advances in robotics fabrication that are currently underway – such as collaborative design tools, computerised materials, adaptive sensing and actuation, advanced construction, on-site and cooperative robotics, machine-learning, human-machine interaction, large-scale fabrication and networked workflows, to name but a few – this compendium reveals how robotic fabrication is becoming a driver of scientific innovation, cross-disciplinary fertilization and creative capacity of an unprecedented kind.

Robotic automation has become ubiquitous in the modern manufacturing landscape, spanning an overwhelming range of processes and applications-- from small scale force-controlled grinding operations for orthopedic joints to large scale composite manufacturing of aircraft fuselages. Smart factories, seamlessly linked via industrial networks and sensing, have revolutionized mass production, allowing for intelligent, adaptive manufacturing processes across a broad spectrum of industries. Against this background, an emerging group of researchers, designers, and fabricators have begun to apply robotic technology in the pursuit of architecture, art, and design, implementing them in a range of processes and scales. Coupled with computational design tools the technology is no longer relegated to the repetitive production of the assembly line, and is instead being employed for the mass-customization of non-standard components. This radical shift in protocol has been enabled by the development of new design to production workflows and the recognition of robotic manipulators as “multi-functional” fabrication platforms, capable of being reconfigured to suit the specific needs of a process. The emerging discourse surrounding robotic fabrication seeks to question the existing norms of manufacturing and has far reaching implications for the future of how architects, artists, and designers engage with materialization processes. This book presents the proceedings of Rob|Arch2014, the second international conference on robotic fabrication in architecture, art, and design. It includes a Foreword by Sigrid Brell-Cokcan and Johannes Braumann, Association for Robots in Architecture. The work contained traverses a wide range of contemporary topics, from methodologies for incorporating dynamic material feedback into existing fabrication processes, to novel interfaces for robotic programming, to new processes for large-scale automated construction. The latent argument behind this research is that the term ‘file-to-factory’ must not be a reductive celebration of expediency but instead a perpetual challenge to increase the quality of feedback between design, matter, and making.

This book provides a clear picture of how computational processes are gradually permeating and innovating the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction sector, contributing to sustainability and aesthetic evolution. It achieves that by gathering a collection of accounts shared by pioneering professionals involved in this innovation, drawing from recent academic studies, ongoing experimental processes conducted in cutting-edge architectural and engineering offices, as well as innovative industrial applications. The covered subjects span a wide range, including artificial intelligence and robotic manufacturing, the metaverse and 3D printing, strategies to counter CO2 consumption through plug-ins, as well as emerging materials and construction techniques. The chapters feature authors who are pioneers and embrace roles like software developers, architects, process engineers, academics, and forward-thinking entrepreneurs. They represent authoritative references within a broader interconnected cultural and technological system; an eclectic system that finds in computational processes the key to addressing the new challenges of contemporary architecture.

This open access book is a compilation of selected papers from 2020 DigitalFUTURES—The 2nd International Conference on Computational Design and Robotic Fabrication (CDRF 2020). The book focuses on novel techniques for computational design and robotic fabrication. The contents make valuable contributions to academic researchers, designers, and engineers in the industry. As well, readers will encounter new ideas about understanding intelligence in architecture.

This open access book is a compilation of selected papers from 2023 DigitalFUTURES — The 5nd International Conference on Computational Design and Robotic Fabrication (CDRF 2023). The work focuses on novel techniques for computational design and robotic fabrication. The contents make valuable contributions to academic researchers, designers, and engineers in the industry. As well, readers will encounter new ideas about understanding intelligence in architecture.

This book collects contributions of forefront research and practices related to the use of the enabling technologies of Industry 4.0 in the architecture and design fields and their impact on the UN's Sustainable Developments goals. The book is structured into three sections (research, practice, and technologies), with the goal of creating a new framework useful for widespread awareness necessary to initiate technology transfer processes for the benefit of the public sector, universities, research centers, and innovative companies, and a new professional figure capable of controlling the entire process is essential. Thus, the book chapters arouse a series of relevant topics such as computational and parametric design, performance-based architecture, data-driven design strategies, parametric environmental design and analysis, computational and parametric structural design and analysis, AI and machine learning, BIM and interoperability, VR and AR, digital and robotic fabrication, additive manufacturing and 3D printing, R&D and entrepreneurship, circular architecture, and didactics. In the post-digital era, where the essence of design lies in the control and information of the process that holistically involves all the aspects mentioned above, rather than in formal research, it is necessary to understand technologies and analyze the advantages that they can bring in terms of environmental sustainability and product innovation.

This open access book offers a comprehensive exploration of the digital innovations that have emerged in recent years for the circular built environment. Each chapter is meticulously crafted to ensure that both academic readers and industry practitioners can grasp the inner workings of each digital technology, understand its relevance to the circular built environment, examine real-life implementations, and appreciate the intriguing business models behind them. Our primary objective is to blend scholarly knowledge with practical inspiration by providing real-life case studies for each innovation. The authors, who possess extensive expertise in their respective fields, have contributed chapters dedicated to digital technologies within their areas of specialization. The book is organized into three distinct parts. The first part focuses on data-driven digital technologies and delves into how their capabilities can facilitate the transition to a circular built environment. Essential aspects such as building information modeling (BIM), digital twins, geographical information systems (GIS), scanning technologies, artificial intelligence (AI), data templates, and material passports are explored as vital tools for data collection, integration, and analysis in the context of circular construction. In the second part, various digital technologies for design and fabrication are introduced. Topics covered include computational design algorithms, additive and subtractive manufacturing, robotic manufacturing, and extended reality. These discussions shed light on how these technologies can be leveraged to enhance design and fabrication processes within the circular built environment. Finally, the last part of the book presents emerging digital concepts related to business and governance. It explores the role of deconstruction and reverse logistics, blockchain technology, digital building logbooks, and innovative business models as enablers of circularity in the built environment. The book concludes with a chapter dedicated to digital transformation and its potential to propel the built environment towards a regenerative future. In addition to the substantive content, the book features forewords and perspectives from esteemed experts, providing valuable economic and creative insights to complement its comprehensive approach.

The first volume of the Adaptive Environments series focuses on Robotic Building, which refers to both physically built robotic environments and robotically supported building processes. Physically built robotic environments consist of reconfigurable, adaptive systems incorporating sensor-actuator mechanisms that enable buildings to interact with their users and surroundings in real-time. These require Design-to-Production and Operation chains that are numerically controlled and (partially or completely) robotically driven. From architectured materials, on- and off-site robotic production to robotic building operation augmenting everyday life, the volume examines achievements of the last decades and outlines potential future developments in Robotic Building. This book offers an overview of the developments within robotics in architecture so far, and explains the future possibilities of this field. The study of interactions between human and non-human agents at building, design, production and operation level will interest readers seeking information on architecture, design-to-robotic-production and design-to-robotic-operation.