AU2017216609B2 - A method of designing a building and a building design - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of designing a building is disclosed. The method comprises (a) selecting design modules from a range of design modules, the range of design modules includes a primary module comprising a first shape and includes secondary modules that are sub-shapes of the primary shape and (b) arranging the design modules in abutment to define a building footprint so that one full side of one design module aligns with one full side of at least one other design module. Also disclosed is a building design and architectural drawings of a building design prepared in accordance with the method. Also disclosed are building components which, when assembled, form a building having a footprint based on a building design prepared in accordance with the method. 9352234 1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU. 1 21/08/17 1/ 4 20 , 12e 16 110 14 182 -660 2 20B 68 - 10A 70 -''72 - 72 - ~70'10 12 -2% -0 70 Figure IA Figure 1B 93522341 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 21/08/17

Description

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93522341 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 21/08/17

A METHOD OF DESIGNING A BUILDING AND A BUILDING DESIGN

TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure relates to building construction. In particular, the disclosure relates to a method of designing buildings so as to provide flexibility in terms of building footprint (and, therefore, flexibility in terms of potential uses for the internal spaces) and also provides relatively simple construction.

The disclosure also relates to building designs that are designed according to the method. The disclosure also relates to a building that is designed according to the method.

BACKGROUNDART Convention transportable buildings for schools comprise a square footprint and the buildings are typically formed as two rectangular halves. The halves are constructed separately and are transported to the final site separately, whereupon the halves are assembled to form a square classroom space. The respective halves are constructed with the main load-bearing support members at the corners of the rectangles. The effect of this construction is that, while the classrooms are simple to design, transport and assemble, the square footprint provides little flexibility in terms of creating larger buildings from three or more of the rectangular halves. Indeed, considerable re-design and additional construction work would be required to re-model the rectangular halves into a building comprising three or more of the rectangular halves.

The challenge with moving away from the convention transportable classroom building is the cost of architectural work in designing a bespoke building for a given project. Architect involvement brings considerable experience and insight to the use of building spaces and to the interrelationship between the building and the surrounding environment. In regard to the latter, for example, the architect is well suited to determining the location of windows to permit natural light into the building in summer and winter, the location of shade components (e.g. eaves and shade sails) to control

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 passive heating of the building. These considerations are usually not taken into account when building a conventional transportable building and locating it on site. However, the involvement of an architect is important if the building is to better serve the needs of its users. In that sense, the needs of some users will differ from the needs of other users, so it makes no sense to provide those different users with the buildings of the same design because it asks the users to adapt their activities to meet the form of the building they use. It is preferable to have the building design modified to the extent possible to meet the needs of the users.

The same applies to transportable buildings in the domestic space whether the basic building footprint is generally rectangular so that it can be transported on roads. As a result, buildings are limited to right-angle or parallel arrangements between transported modules that make up the overall building.

It is generally considered that such flexibility in building design comes at a considerable financial cost because the different building designs make it very challenging to take advantage of economies of scale in terms of construction and assembly. The flexibility in building design to suit user needs gives rise to another challenge associated with the transportability. Cost reductions can be achieved by centralising parts of the construction process at a single location and then transportation pre-fabricated building parts to a given site and assembling them on site. This also reduces the construction time on site, so that the extent to which the construction work interferes with the users at the site is reduced. This is one reason why conventional transportables are attractive. However, the more a building design is tailored to a specific group of users, the more work is generally required on-site to construct the building because less advantage can be taken of off-site, centralised building works that are optimised to fabricate building parts based on established designs. Tailoring building designs has the effect of driving up construction costs.

It follows, therefore, that the practicalities of transportable buildings (i.e. cost and footprints that are sized and shaped for road transport) are given greater weight in terms of building construction than the flexibility of the building design. It is desirable,

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 therefore, to find an alternative building design that provides more of a balance between the flexibility of building designs and the practicalities.

The above references to the background art do not constitute an admission that the art forms a part of the common general knowledge of a person of ordinary skill in the art. The above references are also not intended to limit the application of the apparatus and method as disclosed herein.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present invention defines a method of designing a building footprint using a tessellated grid as a guide, the tessellated grid being defined by a plurality of shapes, each shape defining an area of the building footprint, the plurality of shapes comprising squares and triangles, wherein at least one square shares sides with four triangles and at least one triangle shares sides with two squares and another triangle, the method comprising selecting a plurality of adjacent areas on the tessellated grid to define a building footprint.

The invention also provides a building design having a building footprint designed using the method as described.

The invention also provides architectural drawings in electronic form or in hard copy form of a building design as described.

The invention also provides a building that is constructed in accordance with the building design as described.

Also disclosed herein is a method of designing a building, the method comprising selecting design modules from a range of design modules, the range of design modules includes a primary module comprising a first shape and includes secondary modules that are sub-shapes of the primary shape and wherein the method comprises arranging the design modules in abutment to define a building footprint so

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 that one full side of one design module aligns with one full side of at least one other design module.

The design module shape described above provides a very considerable range of building shapes when multiple design modules are used together. This range means that there is enormous flexibility in designing buildings to suit the needs of the users, whilst retaining the advantages that flow from using a fixed module shape, i.e. namely the practicalities of economies of scale for reducing costs, transportability and the possibility of using a centralised fabrication site retained.

The term "building footprint" is taken to mean the footprint defined by the external wall of the building design. In other words, the footprint excludes verandahs, decks and awnings, for example.

The range of design modules may include tertiary modules that are sub-shapes of the secondary modules.

In one embodiment, the primary module is a five-sided polygon with sides of equal length and with two adjacent corners being right-angles. According to this embodiment, the secondary modules comprise a square module and an equilateral triangle module. Further according to this embodiment, the tertiary modules comprise a rectangle that constitutes half of the square module and a right-angle triangle that constitutes half of the equilateral angle triangle.

It will be appreciated, therefore, that the term "sub-shape", is used in the description and the claims, to mean a shape that is complementary with other sub shapes to provide a higher-ordinance design module. Using the embodiment described above as an example, two tertiary modules in the form of two rectangular modules can be combined to make a square secondary module and the two tertiary right angle triangles can be combined to make the secondary equilateral triangle. It follows that the two rectangle modules have half the footprint size of the square module. It also follows

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 that the primary module has a footprint that is the same as the combined footprint of the square module and the equilateral triangle.

In one embodiment, the design module is scaled so that one unit is fabricated in the form of one design module, including floor, walls and roof, and the unit is transported in an assembled form.

In another embodiment, the selected design modules are broken down into the secondary modules or the tertiary modules for pre-fabrication and transport of pre fabricated units owing to their smaller size. This means that the on-site construction process may involve assembling units corresponding to the secondary modules or the tertiary modules so that the building ultimately comprises a footprint that is consistent with the selected design modules. For example, the footprint of the primary module may be split into four components so that components of multiple primary modules can be transported together in a stacked arrangement and then assembled on-site to form a building having a footprint with the selected primary modules. Optionally, like components from the multiple design modules may be stacked together.

The design method may include extending the footprint of the building in areas adjacent to the design modules to form a verandah or to form an uncovered deck.

The design method may include locating one or more than one internal wall of the building to extend along a boundary of one of the design modules.

Also disclosed herein is a building design comprising an arrangement of building design modules selected from a range of design modules, wherein the range of design modules includes a primary module comprising a first shape and includes secondary modules that are sub-shapes of the primary shape and wherein the building design comprises an arrangement of the design modules in abutment so that one full side of one design module aligns with one full side of at least one other design module.

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23

The range of design module may include tertiary modules that are sub-shapes of the secondary modules.

There is also disclosed building components which, when assembled, form a building having a footprint based on a plurality of design modules, wherein each design module is selected from the range of design modules that includes a primary module comprising a first shape and includes secondary modules that are sub-shapes of the primary shape and wherein the footprint comprises an arrangement of the design modules in abutment so that one full side of one design module aligns with one full side of at least one other design module.

The range of design module may include tertiary modules that are sub-shapes of the secondary modules.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scope of the apparatus and method as set forth in the Summary, specific embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figures 1A and 1B respectively show a plan view of a building in accordance with one embodiment of a method of designing a building and a schematic layout of design modules for the building on a tessellated grid;

Figures 2A and 2B respectively show a plan view of another building in accordance with the embodiment of the method of designing a building and a schematic layout of design modules for the building on a tessellated grid;

Figures 3A and 3B respectively show a plan view of another building in accordance with the embodiment of the method of designing a building and a schematic layout of design modules for the building on a tessellated grid; and

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23

Figure 4 is a schematic view of a design module in accordance with the embodiment of the method of designing a building and showing the module split into components for stacking on a trailer of a truck for transport.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT Figures 1A, 2A and 3A show embodiments of buildings 10 formed in accordance with a building design method that involves selecting a plurality of design modules from a range of design modules and arranging the design modules in abutment to form a footprint of the building so that one full side of one design module aligns with one full sign of at least another design module. In the embodiments shown in Figures 1A, 2A and 3A, the design modules are selected from modules having different shapes. Specifically, the design modules used to form the buildings in Figures 1A and 2A comprise primary modules, in the form of a five-sided polygon with sides of equal length and width to adjacent comers being right-angles, and secondary modules comprising sub-shapes of the primary module.

Building 1OC in Figure 3A, however, includes primary and secondary modules and tertiary modules which comprise sub-shapes of the secondary design modules.

The building 10 shown in Figure 1A comprises a footprint bound by external walls 12. Interior walls 14 delineate spaces between areas within the building permanently. However, temporary internal walls 16 partition sections of the building 10 into separate areas temporarily so there is some flexibility around the use of the internal spaces. For example, the temporary walls 16 may be retracted so as to combine the internal spaces into a larger space for teaching a large group of students. Alternatively, the internal wall 16 may be extended so as to divide the internal space into two separate areas so as to allow different material to be taught to two separate groups. The internal space of the building 1OA includes study tables 20 which comprise a desk and chairs.

Some areas immediately outside the building 1OA include an outdoor deck 18 to enable students to move between different areas of the building without having to walk through the building, and in particular through dedicated study spaces within the

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 building and which may be in use.

It will be appreciated that the arrangement of modules to form the building 1OA results in a linear building shape. However, the modules may be arranged in different configurations to arrive at different building shapes, such as the building 1OB in Figure 1A and the buildings 10 in Figures 2A and 3A. Each of the buildings 10 have a very different shape and, therefore, have a very different footprint. The building shapes 10 can be customised to provide footprints that make the internal spaces useful for a range of purposes. For example, the building 10 shown at the top of Figure 3A includes left and right side study wings which are bridged by an entry foyer that is fitted with lockers for receiving school bags. The left-side wing includes classroom areas at each end and an intermediate theatre defined by internal walls 14 and temporary walls 16. The classroom sections can be used independently by closing the temporary walls 16 or the activities of each classroom may be spill into the theatre section by opening the temporary walls 16. Additionally, one classroom may be in use whilst the theatre section is used without interrupting the classroom activities. This flexibility in the use of the space and its connection to the remainder of the building is an important aspect of the building design. This flexibility flows from designing the building on the basis of combining design modules.

Buildings shown in Figures 1A, 2A and 3A include an internal wall 14 for separating a triangular space from the remainder of the internal space. In a school environment, this triangular space may be used for private study or, in an office space, it may be used as a private meeting room or a sick-room. It will be appreciated, however, that the internal walls 14 may be positioned at any location so as to provide the necessary spaces required for the intended purposes of the building.

The buildings 10 shown in Figures 1A, 2A and 3A are all based on five design modules comprising one primary module, two secondary modules and two tertiary modules. The primary module 70 is a five-sided polygon with sides of equal length and with two adjacent corners being right angles. The secondary design modules comprise sub-shapes of the primary design module and, therefore, comprise an equilateral

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 triangle module 72, in the form of an equilateral triangle, and square module 78, in the form of a square. The tertiary design modules comprise sub-shapes of the secondary design modules and, therefore, comprise a right-angled triangle 74 and a rectangle 76.

The selected design modules used to form the buildings 10 in Figures 1A, 2A and 3A are based on arranging the design modules on a tessellated grid 60 (Figures 1B, 2B and 3B). Referring to the tessellated grid 60 in Figure 1A, the grid 60 is formed of a series of columns. One column is isolated for ease of reference in a box and is denoted as 62. The column 62 is made up of a repeating sequence of shapes, namely an equilateral triangle 64, a square 66 and an inverted equilateral triangle 68. An example of a primary module 70 is shown in a ring for ease of reference in Figure 1B.

Having regard to building 1OA in Figure IB, three primary modules 70 are aligned along the column and are connected by abutting triangle modules 72. The is building lOB comprises two primary modules 70 and three triangle modules 72.

The buildings 10 shown in Figures 2A and 2B are more complex arrangements of primary modules 70 and triangular modules 72 as shown in the tessellated grid 60 in Figure 2B. The buildings as shown in Figure 3A are an even more complex arrangement of primary modules 70 and triangular secondary modules 72. However, building 1OC in the lower left corner of Figure 3A comprises one primary module 70, one triangular module 72 and one right angle triangle module 74 and one rectangle module 76 (the two latter modules being tertiary modules).

In addition to the flexibility provided by using primary, secondary and tertiary modules in the design methodology, the footprint of the buildings 10 can be broken down into parts that can be prefabricated off-site to take advantage of scales of economy.

Specifically, given that the secondary modules 72, 78 each comprise a combination of tertiary modules 74 and 76 and, therefore, the primary modules 70 also comprise a combination of the tertiary modules 74, 76, the construction of buildings 10

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23 having different footprints can be simplified by breaking down the construction process into a first stage of prefabricating standard building components and second stage of transporting those components to the building site and assembling those components on site. This cuts down on the extent to which the construction activity is specifically tailored to a given building. This gives rise to economies of scale despite the ability of the design method to provide a range of building designs which, as described above, are flexible in the use of the internal spaces.

Figure 4 shows that forming the primary and secondary modules from tertiary modules enables units of the building to be prefabricated off-site for transport and then assembled onsite. In particular, Figure 4 shows that the primary module 70 is broken down into two right-angle modules 74 and two rectangle modules 76 and shows how they can be arranged on a trailer bed (denoted by the outline 80) for transport on roads. Such transport is subject to width limitations, beyond which special approvals need to be obtained for transporting "wide loads". Accordingly, keeping the size of the pre fabricated units below the road-transport width limits in an important aspect of the transportable design modules.

It is anticipated that buildings designed in accordance with the method described above will be reduced to a set of architectural drawings which may be in hard-copy form or electronic form.

It is further anticipated that buildings will be constructed in accordance with the building designs conceived by the design method.

It will be further appreciated that, although the design method can be used to determine the building footprint, the exterior appearance of the building may be tailored according to the particular job. This means that buildings designed according to the design method do not necessarily have the same external appearance. For example, a building designed according to the design method may be provided with a pitched roof, a scissor roof, a mono roof or a flat roof. Similarly, the building skin may be selected according to the customer's design preferences or may be selected by the architect.

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23

Whilst a number of specific apparatus and method embodiments have been described, it should be appreciated that the apparatus and method may be embodied in many other forms.

In the claims which follow, and in the preceding description, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" and variations such as "comprises" or "comprising" are used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of the apparatus and method as disclosed herein.

In the foregoing description of preferred embodiments, specific terminology has been resorted to for the sake of clarity. However, the invention is not intended to be limited to the specific terms so selected, and it is to be understood that each specific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar technical purpose. Terms such as "front" and "rear", "inner" and "outer", "above", "below", "upper" and "lower" and the like are used as words of convenience to provide reference points and are not to be construed as limiting terms. The terms "vertical" and "horizontal" are used throughout the specification, including the claims, to refer to orientations relative to the normal operating orientation.

The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information derived from it), or to any matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgement or admission or any form of suggestion that prior publication (or information derived from it) or known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.

In addition, the foregoing describes only some embodiments of the invention(s), and alterations, modifications, additions and/or changes can be made thereto without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosed embodiments, the embodiments being illustrative and not restrictive.

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23

Furthermore, invention(s) have been described in connection with what are presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the invention(s). Also, the various embodiments described above may be implemented in conjunction with other embodiments, for example, aspects of one embodiment may be combined with aspects of another embodiment to realize yet other embodiments. Further, each independent feature or component of any given assembly may constitute an additional embodiment.

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23

Claims (11)

1. A method of designing a building footprint using a tessellated grid as a guide, the tessellated grid being defined by a plurality of shapes, each shape defining an area of the building footprint, the plurality of shapes comprising squares and triangles, wherein at least one square shares sides with four triangles and at least one triangle shares sides with two squares and another triangle, the method comprising selecting a plurality of adjacent areas on the tessellated grid to define a building footprint.

1o 2. A building design having a building footprint designed using the method of claim 1.

3. The building design of claim 2, having a verandah or an uncovered deck.

4. The building design of claim 2 or claim 3, comprising an internal wall.

5. Architectural drawings in electronic form or in hard-copy form of a building design according to any one of claims 2 to 4.

6. A building that is constructed in accordance with the building design of any one of claims 2 to 4.

7. The building of claim 6, wherein the building is constructed on site from a plurality of modules, each module including floor, walls and roof.

8. The building of claim 7, wherein each module is rectangular or triangular shaped when viewed in plan.

9. The building of claim 7 or claim 8, wherein the modules are transportable in an assembled form.

19846486_1 (GHMatters) P103329.AU.1 4/05/23

10. A method of constructing a building according to claim 9, comprising transporting the modules in the assembled form and arranging the modules in abutment with each other on the building footprint.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the modules are in a stacked arrangement while being transported.

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