Biomimcry

This research aims to establish a biomimetic approach to animal behavior in design, particularly in interaction design. We are developing a taxonomy of behaviors and rituals of seduction found in nature, with the goal of building a conceptual framework that relate these behaviors with the design of new interactions. It's believed that these interactions could inspire the interface between people and technological artifacts and also the technological mediated communication between humans. It is intended to demonstrate the relevance of including biological behaviors in design methodologies inspired by nature, in addition to the formal and technical direction that currently prevail in Biomimetic. We believe that we are entering in what we call the post-digital Era, a place where the digital medium, visible or invisible, is taken for guaranteed and it's omnipresent in the fabric of our lives. In this scenario, we consider the opportunity to value biological behaviors as a way to...

Biomimicry is an applied science that derives inspiration for solutions to human problems through the study of natural designs, processes and systems. The widespread and practical application of biomimicry as a design method remains unrealized; interior architecture commonly use biology as a library of shapes, but this alone is not biomimetics; it has to have some biology in it. This paper reviews key points and case studies of applications of biomimicry in interior architecture. A critique of the applications shows that biomimetics is the way to innovation and sustainability and interior architecture must move beyond the formalistic characteristics of nature.

Quantum theory, complexity theory, and ecosystems theory, along with anthropogenic climate change and ecosystem collapses are confronting humanity with insights that will crucially inform the re-design of products, processes, services and institutions in order to catalyse the transition towards a sustainable human civilization. In a fundamentally interconnected and unpredictable world, where local actions have global consequences, the intentionality behind science and design needs to shift from aiming to increase prediction, control and manipulation of nature as a resource, to a transdisciplinary cooperation in the process of learning how to participate appropriately and sustainably in Nature.

Abstract:

Gaining inspiration from nature has a new name: biomimicry. As a supposedly novel technical practice,biomimicry makes promises about solving the world’s technological problems and environmental problems simultaneously. After posing questions about the features, assumptions and ambitions of biomimicry, it is concluded that biomimicry might be a productive way to render nature’s secrets available for commercial and industrial purposes, but for it to move society towards eco-friendliness as it’s supporters often claim, they will have to actively reconstruct the concept with the help from ecocentric ideas.

Biomimicry is an applied science that derives inspiration for solutions to human problems through the study of natural designs, processes and systems. The widespread and practical application of biomimicry as a design method remains unrealized; interior architecture commonly use biology as a library of shapes, but this alone is not biomimetics; it has to have some biology in it. This paper reviews key points and case studies of applications of biomimicry in interior architecture. A critique of the applications shows that biomimetics is the way to innovation and sustainability and interior architecture must move beyond the formalistic characteristics of nature.

Sustainable development has become a central part of the agenda in the building design professions; however, in recent years, the concept of ecologically sustainable development has gained ground which aims to balance both economic and environmental facets of sustainability. This has necessitated new approaches to ecological sustainable design that includes ecological facets to design. Such a design approach that draws from ecology as a model in terms of architecture remains elusive. This research explores Biomimicry as a potential approach that help integrate ecological sustainability to design by understanding the natural processes to comprehend its form and the environment within an ecosystem. This study examines Biomimicry theory, and introduces an ecological model, which is most applicable to architecture. This model leads to a theoretical framework that proposes two ways of emulating nature: direct and indirect that identify naturally occurring adaptation and integration processes. The aim and outcome of the framework will ultimately be a design process that enhances ecological sustainability by increasing the applicability of Biomimicry theory into architectural practice.

Natural environments if observed closely
are in transition, activated by unseen forces, the
undefined rules of selection, and intricate relationships.
One of these inspiring phenomena is commonly known
as self-organization which can be witnessed in almost
every living organism. This research is delving into
experimenting with translating this complex natural
phenomenon into architecture applications by using
Voronoi; a digital plug-in Rhinoceros that can help to
translate self-organizing systems into architecture.
This academic research elaborates on how this plugin
can be used to design complex spatial forms and
different elements of an architectural structure to
produce inimitable solutions. Various systems are
developed with the help of Voronoi tessellations on
Grasshopper linking it to different self-organized
organisms. This transformation of self-organization
phenomena into architectural elements are then
compared to present out of the box opportunities for
architectural projects.

Seit der Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts entwickeln viele Teilbereiche der Biotechnologie vielversprechenden Lösungsansätze für die Bewältigung dringender Fragen unserer Zeit. In technischer Hinsicht werden Erfolge erzielt, während die ethisch naturphilosophische Grundlage einer wieder entdeckten Faszination an Lösungen aus der Natur den finanziellen Inter-essen des Risikokapitals geopfert wird und somit zu einer grünen Farce verpackt wird. In der folgenden Seminararbeit möchte ich sowohl die Chancen aufzeigen, die Biomimicry mit dem Ansatz der Natur als Model, Maß und Mentor laut Janine Benyus' Buch Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature aus dem Jahr 1997 bietet, jedoch auch näher auf die dünne Philosophische Grundlage eingehen und die Arbeit von Henry Dicks eines " enlightened naturalism " würdigen. Biomimicry als Geschäftsmodell durch Beratungsfirmen wie Biomimicry 3.8 und dem non-profit Ableger, dem Biomimicry Institute mit dessen Onlinedatenbank Ask Nature, und die dadurch neu entstehenden Märkte sind ebenso wichtig für das Verständnis, wie auch die Lösung der Probleme, die eine fehlende ontologische Beschäftigung mit dem Begriff Bio-mimicry mit sich bringt.

Since the second half of the 20th century a lot of biotechnology sectors have proposed some promising solutions on how we should deal with contemporary problems. Technically we partly succeeded while our basic understanding of Nature lacks an ethical and environmental philosophical basis and is further capitalized by venture capitalists. In the following seminar paper I would like to present the opportunities of Biomimicry using Nature as model, measure and mentor according to Janine Benyus' book Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature from 1997 as a basis on the one hand and have a closer look on its unfounded philosophical framework on the other hand, highlighting Henry Dicks' " enlightened naturalism ". For a deeper understanding of the current problems of not seeing Biomimicry as an ontological term it's important to look at Biomimicry as a business model with consulting firms like Biomimicry 3.8 and its non-profit sister the Biomimicry Institute with the Ask Nature database.

Sustainable development has become a central part of the agenda in the building design professions; however, in recent years, the concept of ecologically sustainable development has gained ground which aims to balance both economic and environmental facets of sustainability. This has necessitated new approaches to ecological sustainable design that includes ecological facets to design. Such a design approach that draws from ecology as a model in terms of architecture remains elusive. This research explores Biomimicry as a potential approach that help integrate ecological sustainability to design by understanding the natural processes to comprehend its form and the environment within an ecosystem. This study examines Biomimicry theory, and introduces an ecological model, which is most applicable to architecture. This model leads to a theoretical framework that proposes two ways of emulating nature: direct and indirect that identify naturally occurring adaptation and integration processes. The aim and outcome of the framework will ultimately be a design process that enhances ecological sustainability by increasing the applicability of Biomimicry theory into architectural practice.

Sustainable development has become a central part of the agenda in the building design professions; however, in recent years, the concept of ecologically sustainable development has gained ground which aims to balance both economic and environmental facets of sustainability. This has necessitated new approaches to ecological sustainable design that includes ecological facets to design. Such a design approach that draws from ecology as a model in terms of architecture remains elusive. This research explores Biomimicry as a potential approach that help integrate ecological sustainability to design by understanding the natural processes to comprehend its form and the environment within an ecosystem. This study examines Biomimicry theory, and introduces an ecological model, which is most applicable to architecture. This model leads to a theoretical framework that proposes two ways of emulating nature: direct and indirect that identify naturally occurring adaptation and integration processes. The aim and outcome of the framework will ultimately be a design process that enhances ecological sustainability by increasing the applicability of Biomimicry theory into architectural practice.

This research aims to establish a biomimetic approach to animal behavior in design, particularly in interaction design. We are developing a taxonomy of behaviors and rituals of seduction found in nature, with the goal of building a conceptual framework that relate these behaviors with the design of new interactions. It’s believed that these interactions could inspire the interface between people and technological artifacts and also the technological mediated communication between humans. It is intended to demonstrate the relevance of including biological behaviors in design methodologies inspired by nature, in addition to the formal and technical direction that currently prevail in Biomimetic. We believe that we are entering in what we call the post-digital Era, a place where the digital medium, visible or invisible, is taken for guaranteed and it’s omnipresent in the fabric of our lives. In this scenario, we consider the opportunity to value biological behaviors as a way to oppose ...

Purpose With recent advances in the field of 3D printing, new prosthetic features have been developed to provide accessibility to patients. However, the mechanisms employed for its performance still need to be better explored. In this article, a study is proposed on the angular variation between the joints of a human finger and a design solution based on soft robotics, in order to guide studies on prosthetic solutions. Methods A literature review was carried out on the applications of pneumatic actuators of soft robotics for the development of hand prostheses. As part of the theoretical aspects, the application of bending actuators that employ the dynamics of the movement of the legs of arachnids was also studied, in order to propose an application in the model. Finally, the angular variation was analyzed during the closing process of the right hand in order to apply the study in the construction of the prosthesis. Results Despite the complexity of moving human fingers, it is possible to develop a prosthetic mechanism that integrates the capabilities of soft actuators and 3D-printed materials. In addition, the angulations of the joints of the index finger vary differently under the same impulse. Conclusion Using the spider's movement mechanism, it is possible to develop a pneumatic actuator integrated with the rigid structures of the printed finger. In addition, the angular variation of the joints of the index finger changes differently under the same stimulus, which allows the application of soft robotics as a resource to mimic human movement.

We envision that the next generation of knowledge-based CAD systems will be characterized by four features: they will be based on cognitive accounts of design, and they will support collaborative design, conceptual design, and creative design. In this paper, we first analyze these four dimensions of CAD. We then report on a study in the design, development and deployment of a knowledge-based CAD system for supporting biologically inspired design that illustrates these four characteristics. This system, called DANE for Design by Analogy to Nature Engine, provides access to functional models of biological systems. Initial results from in situ deployment of DANE in a senior-level interdisciplinary class on biologically inspired design indicates its usefulness in helping designers conceptualize design of complex systems, thus promising enough to motivate continued work on knowledge-based CAD for biologically inspired design. More importantly from our perspective, DANE illustrates how cognitive studies of design can inform the development of CAD systems for collaborative, conceptual, and creative design, help assess their use in practice, and provide new insights into human interaction with knowledge-based CAD systems.

Antoni Gaudi and Santiago Calatrava have reputation for designing bio-inspired creative and technical buildings. Even though they have followed different independent approaches towards design, the source of bio-inspiration seems to be common. Taking a closer look at their projects reveals that Calatrava has been influenced by Gaudi in terms of interpreting nature and applying natural principles into the design process. This research firstly discusses the dialogue between Biomimicry and architecture. This review also explores human/nature discourse during the history by focusing on how nature revealed itself to the fine arts. This is explained by introducing naturalism and romantic style in architecture as the outcome of designers’ inclination towards nature. Reviewing the literature, theoretical background and practical illustration of nature have been included. The most dominant practical aspects of imitating nature are form and function. Symbolic mimesis (imitating nature’s patterns and shapes) is not a new idea and architects have always been inspired by natural forms, structures, and functions. Nature has been reflected in architectural science resulted in shaping different architectural styles such as organic, green, sustainable, bionic, and biomorphic. By defining a set of common aspects of Gaudi and Calatrava‘s design approach and by considering biomimetic design categories (organism, ecosystem, and behaviour as the main division and form, function, process, material, and construction as subdivisions), Gaudi’s and Calatrava’s project have been analysed. This analysis explores if their design approaches are equivalent or different. Based on this analysis, Gaudi’s architecture can be recognised as biomorphic while Calatrava’s projects are literally biomimetic. Referring to these architects, this review suggests a new set of principles by which a bio-inspired project can be determined either biomorphic or biomimetic.