間 MA’s Obscure City of Voids: Modular Structures Research

Hey guise!! This is my post on researching modular structures for Project 4 of Foundation 3D. :-)))


In general, modularity refers to the degree to which a system’s components may be separated and recombined. This concept is found in many aspects in the world, but I’ll be focusing on nature and built environment.


MODULARITY IN NATURE

When it comes to nature, what the module is exactly can be seen in a number of different ways.

1. It may be used to refer to organisms that have an indeterminate structure wherein modules of various complexity may be assembled without strict limits on their number or placement. This is shown clearly in plants, who have different components like leaves or twigs that are arranged to form a whole plant.

Image taken from www.blog.wolfire.com

2.  The term has also been used in a broader sense in biology to refer to the reuse of homologous structures across individuals and species. It can refer to how organs and bones act as modules to make up the entire organism, whereas some prefer to look at more basic units of life, like the cell or genes, as modules that form organisms.

Image taken from www.futureistech.info
this could be a good meme. Image taken from www. new.homeschoolmarketplace.com

MODULARITY IN BUILT ENVIRONMENT

Architecture can be split into two types:

  INTEGRAL Architecture in which the number of functions is considerably larger than the number of components, which implies that some components are involved in delivering multiple functions.
  MODULAR  A system composed of separate components that can be connected together. You can replace or add any one component (module) without affecting the rest of the system.

GOOD: Modularity in architecture is more practical and cost-saving as the designs are maximised from a limited number of components, resulting in more productive building.

NOT SO GOOD: However, over-doing it may result in inefficient performance and the repetition leading to a loss of design identity.


EXAMPLES

1. Charles De Gaulle International Airport – Terminal 2E, Paris, France

Image taken from www.arch2O.com

The road infrastructure is part of the site’s entire composition as roads and viaducts come together and converge at the center of the terminal, flanked by two modules on each side.

All these modules, located at the heart of the aircraft area, form four narrow 60 meter-wide buildings where travelers can see aircrafts from the road. Each module is covered with trapezoidal shells forming four radiating arcs when seen from the sky.

2. Traditional Japanese rooms

Image taken from www.sinonomesou.com
Image taken from www.wabisabidesign.co.uk

The usage of standard tatami mats to plan out the sizes of rooms is considered a way of using modules. However, apart from that, the rooms are also divided into different parts that can be seen as different modules as well. Apart from the tatami, there is also the fusuma, the sliding doors in a room, and the shoji, the translucent sliding doors. The tokonoma refers to the alcove of the room, and the chigaidana  are the built-in shelves.