Tag: Rounded

Circular Logic: “Endless Runways” Rounded to Save Energy, Time & Space

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

Designed to reduce real estate needs for runways in ever-more-crowded cities, this “endless runway” system encircles a central terminal building and lets multiple planes take off and land at the same time.

Developed by Dutch scientist Henk Hesselink, the two-mile-circumference shape also lets planes land or take off in alignment with the wind (rather than fighting crosswinds) since they can line up with any point on the strip.

In theory, the system would improve the flying experience for both passengers and pilots, making for smoother departures and arrivals. They would also save energy and space, increasingly an issue for once-suburban (or rural) airports now encroached upon by growing cities.

Critics have expressed skepticism regarding the difficulty of landings and take-offs in such a setup, but big backers seem to believe in the potential. Also, even if not immediately feasible, increased automation could make it increasingly viable over time, since computer systems can coordinate ideal landing and arrival trajectories for optimal safety and comfort and across multiple planes.

Each such setup provides the length of three airstrips and could be deployed or at least tested at scale in Europe soon — participating backers include the Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR), along with DLR Germany and ONERA in France.

From the designers research report: “The results of the literature survey in this document are promising and suggest that a circular runway can be developed with current and expected technology. Today’s aircraft characteristics allow to take off and land with speeds and low altitude bank angles compatible with the operation on a circular track. The Endless Runway fits in future concepts that specify improved planning of operations, new navigation equipment, and intermodal transport.”

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April 2, 2017
Circular Reasoning: How Rounded Homes Resist Storms & Save Lives

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

Combining the physical benefits of circular plans with the practicality of straight lines and corners, octagonal houses are uniquely positioned to resist hurricanes, tsunamis and earthquakes that threaten coastlines. Rounded habitats have a long history, from tipis and yurts through the geodesic domes of Buckminster Fuller. Indeed, round homes make sense for a lot of reasons. They have less surface area, which means they require less construction material and have greater energy efficiency, for instance.

Critically, rounded homes are also ideal for resisting extreme weather (above: a regular home destroyed in a storm and a surviving semi-round house).

Flat sides pose a significant structural risk during hurricanes and tsunamis. It is much easier for wind and water to flow around a round house than a square or rectangular one.

In modern rounded house designs, radial floor and roof trusses meet in a center ring like spokes on a wheel and thus lock the building in a constant state of compression, which further reinforces its structural integrity. This approach also helps them resist earthquakes.

Of course, fitting furniture along the edges of a truly round house can be frustrating. The space and materials saved are nice, but the usability of the resulting spaces is diminished.

Today, many round-house makers opt for a middle ground and go with octagonal floor plans (or other variants with more than four sides). Doubling the number of walls, this represents the best of both worlds in many ways. These are easier to construct with contemporary materials and techniques, but still take advantage of wind- and water-resistance found in edge-less dwellings.

Deltac, one manufacturer of such semi-round structures, boasts that none of their 5,000 homes built to date has been knocked down by nature. These kinds of homes also have an added benefit for those living along coasts, where storms are a great thread: their shapes provide seaside dwellers with amazing panoramic views (images via Deltac and Cayman).

Open Source Homes: 6 Free Plans Put High-End Design in Reach

Rendering luxury-class house designs accessible to the public is just part of the beauty of Paperhouses, an endeavor to raise the quality of free house plans and and explore the potentials for …

Hydraulic Lift to Save House on Stilts from Future Flooding

A Modernist classic, the famous Farnsworth House by Mies van der Rohe was originally built with a raised platform but that has not managed to save it from floods, leading its custodians to an …

Unique Retreats: 8 Offbeat One-of-a-Kind Houses & Homes

Who has not wanted a one-of-a-kind home to call their own? Some people, however, take this desire to extremes most of us would never go to – even if we could afford it. From houses shaped like …

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August 31, 2016
Well Rounded: 7 Animal Murals on Abandoned Buildings in Africa

[ By WebUrbanist in Art & Street Art & Graffiti. ]

Using the unique regional shapes of structures to his advantage, street artist ROA has created a series of large-scale works as part of a neighborhood art project in Djerba, Tunisia, drawing 150 artists from 30 countries.

While a number of impressive and well-known painters and muralists contributed to Djerbahood, ROA’s work is particularly site-specific, drawing on the architectural details (like domes) present in the regional landscape, mainly in deserted buildings.

The artist’s signature creatures, as usual, vary with the locality as well – in this case his work features a combination of desert and sea animals, reflecting the water-surrounded space as well as the dry land of the area.

The largest island in North Africa, Djerba has become a true open-air museum, contrasting authenticity and tradition with a space for expression by artists of various cultures. This project was made in part to appeal to tourists, aiming to draw in additional visitors from Europe and around the world. Additional work by ROA includes urban street animals in Mexico and Panama City as well as London.

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Subtractive Street Art: Sculptural Murals Cut into City Walls

Vhils is adept at carving, cutting and peeling to reveal art inside solid surfaces, but his artistic experiments also include carefully-calculated explosions …
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3D Architectural Illusions: 12 Paintings, Murals & Mosaics

Inside a home, on the outside of a building or even in a swimming pool, the illusion of 3D can transform a space, giving the appearance of depth, texture and …
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Rounded Market Hall: Huge Digital Mural Wraps 118,000 Sq Ft

A massive mixed use project in Rotterdam by MVRDV, this newly-opened building wraps vertically around an open central space but also features one of the …
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November 13, 2014
Rounded Market Hall: Huge Digital Mural Wraps 118,000 Sq Ft

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

A massive mixed use project in Rotterdam by MVRDV, this newly-opened building wraps vertically around an open central space but also features one of the largest works of art in the Netherlands: an incredible digital display spanning over 100,000 square feet of the interior surface area.

The closed-but-open solution is a response to new Dutch legislation requiring produce markets to be enclosed, balanced with a desire to keep an open-air feeling to the space. The resulting design with its vibrantly-colored displays makes the place seem inviting from the outside, drawing people in to visit the nearly 100 shopping stalls within. The complex is expected to have over 5 million annual visitors.

Glazed on two sides with transparent glass, apartments wraps the others sides and top of the structure, giving over 200 residents views down into the market below as well as balconies toward the outside world on the exterior skin of the structure. The suspended glass panels are held in tension by thin wires, making the supports as invisible as possible while providing protection against strong winter winds.

From the firm’s press release: “The large mural which covers the vaulted interior, ‘Cornucopia’ by artists Arno Coenen and Iris Roskam has a total surface of 11.000 m² and shows oversized images of market produce which can be bought at the market, as well as flowers and insects referencing the work of Dutch still life masters from the 17th century. In order to achieve the required sharpness, the image was rendered by Pixar software. It was printed onto perforated aluminium panels, then attached to acoustic panels for noise control. The print resolution of the art work is comparable to a glossy magazine.”

More about the layout: “Markthal comprises 96 fresh food stalls and shop units, ranging from Rotterdam based businesses and market vendors to established local heroes. They will offer a diverse range of products: from fresh fish to game, from cappuccino to cheese, from Chinese to Dutch, from ice cream to local produce, from bargains to exclusive slow food. The ground and first floor accommodate 20 retail units, restaurants and cafés. All shops are food-related and include a crockery- and a wine shop. A supermarket is located on the 1st underground level allowing the shoppers to complete their shopping under one roof.”

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City-Sized Artwork: Huge Building Mural Spans 99 Structures

In his most ambitious and large-scale work to date, Felice Varini has created a perspectival piece that wraps around the entire historic core of Hasselt, …
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Roaming Market: Modern Update on 16th Century Tradition

A colorful cart with a rooftop stage and a built-in seating area for chess based on 16th-century pageant carts promotes the Waterloo district of London.
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Endless City: Skyscraper Wraps Upward with Walkable Ramps

An urban pedestrian paradise, this conceptual design proposes to turn cities skyward with a system of flexible open spaces that gradually rise as floor plates …
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October 15, 2014
Fresh Spin: Rounded Space-Saving Clothes Drying Rack

[ By WebUrbanist in Design & Furniture & Decor. ]

Hanging clothes out to dry is a design problem with a long history and many solutions, making it all the more rare to see something like this clever star-shaped approach that addresses the issue with such adeptness.

In some Asian or European regions with more temperate climates, people string their clothes outside to dry, taking maximum advantage of warmth and airflow. Apartment and condo dwellers in colder places often have fewer options – Aaron Dunkerton of Queensland, Australia, but graduate of Kingston University, in the colder United Kingdom, can relate to both sets of conditions.

The clever twelve-pointed-star design allows for maximum air circulation and hanging area with a minimum footprint when the drying rack is folded up and stored. A compact collection of aluminum rods strung between plywood supports are unfolded and latched to form an essentially circular shape with space in the middle – all part of a low-tech spin cycle that takes up less space in your closet, too.

More about this unconventional clotheshorse: “The dimensions of my clothes horse are 56cm long, 32 wide and 23cm high when it is collapsed so it is much easier to store than a conventional clothes airer which are normally awkward sizes and hard to hide when not in use. When in use its dimensions are 56cm deep, 112cm wide and 112cm tall. The shape of my clothes horse when erect allows for good air circulation around the clothes, which will help them to dry faster.”

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Edge Cases: 8 Space-Saving Design Ideas for Inside Corners

Most home furnishings are made for flat surfaces, not for those uncomfortable edge conditions we call either ‘inside’ or ‘outside’ corners. But not these! Click Here to Read More »»

Swiss-Army Bathroom: Spine-Inspired Space-Saving Design

Like a giant-sized Swiss Army knife, this narrow column unfolds to reveal everything your bathroom could need – a NASA-worthy, space-age modular design idea. Click Here to Read More »»

LiftBed & BedUp: 2 Space-Saving Beds Stored on Ceilings

In a bid to one-up the traditional fold-up Murphy bed, two companies are switching a wall-based storage approach for a ceiling-centric alternative. For those … Click Here to Read More »»

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January 3, 2014