Bio-inspired, Flexible Structures and Materials - Biotechnologies and Biomimetics for Civil Engineering - page 286

This concept was put to the test through the Flectofin being the triggering
inspiration for the façade of the Thematic Pavilion at the EXPO 2012 trade-fair in
Yeosu, Korea, by soma-architecture and Knippers Helbig Advanced engineering.
The engineering company was then commissioned with the planning and con-
structional design of this kinetic façade. The mechanism that should move the 108
lamellas was still unclear at the start; the central question being how one could also
guarantee their functional suitability according to the expected case of a typhoon.
In a first investigation, it was checked whether the Flectofin principle could be
magnified to the large scale of 108 lamellas with heights varying between 3 m and
14 m. This proved that up-scaling of the basic principle was possible, yet could not
entirely fulfil the architectural intentions of the façade. Inspired by the Flectofin ,
an alternative elastic kinetic mechanism was developed which is based similarly
on structural failure (buckling), but does not correspond to the direct abstraction of
the S. reginae. These further developments show the potential of such basic dis-
coveries, in this case, the instrumentalisation of failure and deformation. In the
context of architectural design, it also became clear that targeted adaptations are
needed in order to be able to handle the profile of requirements in the intended
field of use.
12.4.2 Textile Hybrid: M1
The Textile Hybrid M1 at La Tour de l'Architecte, France showcases the research
on hybrid form- and bending-active structure systems by the Institute of Compu-
tational Design (ICD) and Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design
(ITKE) with students of the University of Stuttgart and ABK Stuttgart. The scientific
goal of the project was the exploration of formal and functional possibilities in
highly integrated equilibrium systems of bending-active elements and multi-
dimensional form-active membranes. The resulting multi-layered membrane sur-
faces allow not only structural integration, but also serve as a functional integration
by differentiating the geometry and orientation of the membrane surfaces. The site
selected for the design is a historical and structurally sensitive tower in Monthoiron,
France. The tower is based on a design by Leonardo Da Vinci from the 16th century,
which brought the owners to the idea of making the tower usable for exhibitions. On
the basis of a spatial program, a Textile Hybrid system was developed where short-
cutting of forces produced a minimisation of the loading on the tower. In the context
of this project, the M1 was developed as a representative temporary pavilion.
The Textile Hybrid system was constructed with GFRP rods of diameters
ranging from 3 to 24 mm in combination with textile membranes as continuous
surfaces and open-weave meshes. The elastic rods gain their stiffness from active
bending into curved leaf-shaped modules which are networked into a global
structural system. Stress stiffening effects are activated by further deformation of
the system through the integration of a pre-stressed membrane surface, and
therefore create a fully Textile Hybrid system (Lienhard et al. 2013b ).