The Robots Are Leaving the Cage. Imagining the Future of Construction
Author: Sara Codarini
Affiliation: Lawrence Technological University
Abstract
Architecture today is challenged by technology advancements and the spread of new tools such as robots, which are mediators between digital and physical. This paper aims to outline future trends that will introduce substantial changes in the construction sector and architecture technology. In support of the topic, representative examples of ongoing experimentations are provided. They are relevant to understand the potentials of tools and foreseeable applications to update the building culture. The introduction of new instruments and procedures might afect building methodologies and the relationship between upstream and downstream design workfows. This relationship is an important aspect because upstream strategies inform downstream processes and vice versa. Also, advanced construction tools enrich the creative phase by providing an opportunity for innovative data integration. The use of computational design, digital fabrication, robotics, and cobotics allows for innovating the building sector by promoting a method based on the customization of forms to be operated onsite. In this scenario, robots play the role of compressing the distance between design and production. Current trends open hypothetical potential for the future of construction: there is a chance for the perfect storm to overwhelm the industry shortly, in compliance with The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Digital Transformation. Digital Transformation will result in the automation of every task that can be automated, accepting that robots want to “leave the cage,” to be embedded in material workfows within hybrid human-machine workspaces. It is expected that architecture, which usually absorbs innovation from other sectors through technological transfer, will become an early adopter of new systems and technologies, always focusing on the design quality at all scales.
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