StructuralComponents 6: An early-stage design tool for flexible topologies of mid-rise concrete buildings

Abstract

This paper discusses the project StructuralComponents 6, a continuation of the ongoing project StructuralComponents which focuses on the development of computational tools for conceptual building design beginning with Breider [1]. The goal of StructuralComponents 6 is to develop a tool for the conceptual design of mid-rise concrete buildings laterally supported by shear walls. The tool allows a user to digitally construct a prismatic, rectangular building design with a custom number and arrangement of shear walls and performs structural validation of any given design in terms of stiffness, strength and stability. The project in split into two main phases. 1) A calculation method is developed that can be applied to a flexible number and arrangement of shear walls, assuming the shear walls are connected by infinitely rigid floors. 2) The tool is implemented using Python and Grasshopper. A case study is performed to determine the applicability of the tool to real-life building design. It is concluded that the rigid-floor calculation method is adequate for the design of buildings with minimal out-of-plane floor effects (i.e. buildings with pre-cast floors) and minimal torsional effects. Through the case study, it is shown that the tool can be successfully applied to a building with a complex arrangement of shear walls.