UCLA Architectural Program Teaches Design for Robot Homes 35
Lucas123 writes: "UCLA has created a graduate-level program that teaches architects how to design intelligent robotic buildings that are able to change their configuration to adapt to their owners' needs. The design are not limited to homes, of course, and could be used in office buildings or hotels. For example, a hotel could switch out a small bathroom in a guest room for a larger one that comes to the room along the outside façade of the building. Factories could also be transformed based on changing needs. Students in the program are working to come up with a more dynamic building, possibly one that has moving platforms or walls that could adapt the building for manufacturing different sized aircraft or products."
Architecture Geeks (Score:5, Interesting)
I recommend reading the Christopher Alexander Books: "The Timeless Way of Building", "A Pattern Language", etc.
These are the books that the Gang of Four read that inspired the software design patterns movement. So there's that tie in.
But the other reason to read them is to encounter an entirely different philosophy about why and how to build things.
So while the geek in me reacts to this headline with, "cool! Moving walls that reconfigure themselves! How efficient", the part of me that has read Alexander asks some questions:
How will this make users of the building feel?
Is ease of reconfiguration the most important design quality in a space?
How will it impact people when the space they live and work in changes overnight?
Also, don't read the Alexander books if you've just changed house. You'll walk around your new place frustrated at all of the faults you didn't know were faults :)