This project develops a material-aware basic grammar for generating designs with embedded joints. The project translates an initial “joint-less” basic grammar into a joint-based grammar by replacing the labels with two types of joints. These two joints correspond to two spatial relations for a pillar shape (e.g., a Froebel-inspired narrow column). The spatial relations correspond to two rules, r1 and r2. One rule is symmetric and is called the “cantilever,” the other is nonsymmetric and is called “the cross lap.”

For each spatial relation there are 16 possible configurations. That is, the design space contains 256 possible designs. Ten designs from the first relation and fourteen from the second are different. Some rule derivations lead to impossible designs, i.e., with physically overlapping parts, while other derivations lead to possible designs. The design space contains both finite and infinite designs.

This material-aware basic grammar follows the description of grammar induction and grammar design by Prof. Terry Knight. See, in particular, the following publications.

T. W. Knight. (1999). “Shape grammars: six types.” Environment and Planning B 26.

T. W. Knight. (1992). “Designing with grammars.” In: G. N. Schmitt (ed.), CAAD Futures ’91.

T. Knight and G. Stiny. (2015). “Making grammars: from computing with shapes to computing with things.” Design Studies 41.

This project is in collaboration with Ines Ariza (ETH Zurich) during the course Visual Computing I at MIT Department of Architecture. Professor Terry Knight teaches the course.