An Intelligent Design Methodology for Morphing Structures Under Winds

Civil infrastructure is vulnerable to extreme winds that pose threats to its safety, habitability and serviceability issues that potentially threaten life, human comfort and property. The burgeoning growth of mega urban areas with clusters of tall buildings are facing these challenges. Mitigation of these effects has been achieved through energy dissipation devices and shape tailoring as reflected in the design of Burj Khalifa. Advances in computational engineering/intelligence are offering data-driven design platforms that allow design of adaptive structures via shape and topology optimization. In this study, aerodynamically congruent building forms coupled with topologically optimum structural systems are automatically generated using such platforms. A building equipped with sensors and actuators is designed so that it can actively morph in their profile directly limiting the source of dynamic wind load effects and redirecting load path through sculpturing of the building structural system embedded with local energy dissipation systems. Advances in computational fluid dynamics, stochastic emulation and machine learning are being employed to manage morphing of building facade in real-time using actuation systems in anticipation of wind gusts for enhanced performance. The proposed design optimization strategy that synthesizes structural optimization and engineering informatics allows an end-to-end schema for data-driven shape morphing of buildings. It has the promise of revolutionizing the conventional construction practice of tall buildings using a static building facade to a dynamic one that can be activated through an optimal placement of linkages and actuators leading to a potential use of the digital material currently being considered for aircraft wings. Presented in the Student Poster Competition at the 2017 Global Grand Challenges Summit, held July 18–20, 2017, at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Booth number: 67. The summit was jointly organized by the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, the Royal Academy of Engineering, and the Chinese Academy of Engineering.