AMURAD Robotic Construction System
INVESTIGATORS: A. Scott Howe (PI), working with the Kajima AMURAD team.
FUNDING: Supported by Kajima Corporation
PERIOD: 1994.
ABSTRACT: Design studies for automated building system and kit-of-parts. Presented as a design-sensitive alternative to a project already in the design stages. A kit-of-parts concrete panel and suspension structure which can be assembled using automated means. The assembly takes place on the ground level. Upon completion of a floor, the entire building is lifted up by the AMURAD jacks, and work commences on the next lower floor.
Other relevant links, images, and animations:
Video showing lift-up process of AMURAD system (10.6mb produced by Kajima)
A.S. Howe (2003). Design Principles for Kinematic Architecture. Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Construction in the 21st Century (CITC-II). 10-12 December, 2003, Hong Kong.
A.S. Howe (2002 October). The Ultimate Construction Toy: Applying Kit-of-Parts Theory to Habitat and Vehicle Design (AIAA 2002-6116). 1st Space Architecture Symposium (SAS 2002), Houston, Texas, USA, 10-11 October 2002. Reston, Virginia, USA: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
A.S. Howe (2001). Automated construction and the power of the designer. In P. Telang (Chair), E-Space. Architecture / Engineering / Construction (AEC) workshop held in Mumbai, India.
A.S. Howe (2000). Designing for Automated Construction. Automation in Construction 9, 3, 259-276.
A.S. Howe; I. Ishii; T. Yoshida (1999). Kit-of-parts: A review of object-oriented construction techniques. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction (ISARC16). 22-24 September 1999, Madrid, Spain. London: International Association for Automation and Robotics in Construction (IAARC).
A.S. Howe (1998). A new paradigm for life-cycle management of kit-of-parts building systems. (Doctoral Dissertation, University of Michigan, 1998). University Microfilms International, No. 9909905.
Miyamoto, Ishii, Shibata, Dobashi, Howe, Yoshida, Takada, Ueno, Kunugi, Yagi, Nakata, Hatakeyama, Kigawada, Yomo, and Koga (1998). Study on assembly process for large-scale structures. Heisei 10 nendo IMS Kenkyu Seika Koen Ronbushu (1998 IMS Research Results), pp.119-122. Tokyo, Japan: Intelligent Manufacturing Systems (IMS) Center.
A.S. Howe (1998). Jidoka Seko wo mezashita Kenchiku Design (Architectural Design Addressing Automated Construction Processes). Dai 12 Kai Kenchiku Seko Robot Symposium (12th Symposium on Architectural Construction Robotics), pp.1-8. Tokyo, Japan: Nihon Kenchiku Gakkai Kenchiku Seisan Jidoka Shoiinkai- (Architectural Institute of Japan Research Committee on Architectural Manufacturing Automation).