The challenge
A hinged connection is limited to the linkage of load-bearing members within a triangulated structural system. How would a rigid bolt connection look like that is capable of being extended in three dimensions based on cubic cells?
The invention
The RES-Cubic Space Frame provides a construction kit with rigid connections between nodes and bars that can be extended in three dimensions. The node comprises two half-shells to lock in four bars with one central bolt. Testing the rigidity of the detachable nodal joint at the Otto Graf Institute of the University of Stuttgart revealed a higher stiffness of the nodal joint itself then that of the jointed steel bars.
The advantages
- Construction kit for wide-span structures
- Adaption to the load distribution by increasing the density of the cubic cells
- Unsurpassed variability with cubic cells
The applications
- Interior design
- Exhibition construction
- Wide-span structures