A FRAMEWORK FOR LINKING DESIGN AND FABRICATION IN GEOMETRICALLY COMPLEX ARCHITECTURE

While the development of specialized geometric design tools for geometrically complex architecture becomes increasingly common, an easily accessible link to fabrication processes is still missing. Common approaches to link design and fabrication suffer from various inefficiencies. We present a fabrication planning framework capable of extending specialized geometric design tools to seamless digital chains that directly connect designer and CNC fabrication machinery. By integrating design and fabrication planning processes, our framework avoids common data exchange problems and allows for feedback on fabrication planning results at design time. In combination with a geometrically versatile representation of physical parts, we achieve a reusable solution that is applicable to the diverse requirements of geometrically complex architecture. In this paper, we present the concept, design and implementation of our solution together with experiments and results.