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Reciprocal Architecture

In: English and Literature

Submitted By keenaest
Words 266
Pages 2
RECIPROCAL ARCHITECTURE Reciprocal frames comprise a family of structural systems characterized by the interdependent relations of their constituent parts. The term “reciprocal frame” was coined by the English designer and builder Graham Brown in order to describe a structural paradigm that had, until that time, been without a name. Reciprocal frame building types have a long, though somewhat obscure history, having been developed seemingly in parallel by different cultures in response to the constraints of available materials, but for the most part abandoned following the introduction of modern structural typologies and increased availability of building materials through trade and the development of better transportation technologies. As our global resources are subjected to greater pressure, there has been renewed interest in architectural forms that are highly flexible to available materials. Reciprocal frame systems are efficient in their use of small pieces of material to span large volumes. This has beneficial implications for construction in that it makes available a material set that is otherwise unsuitable for architectural applications. Hardwoods and lower-quality softwoods that cannot be used in other framing schemes are ideally suited to RF morphology (Thonnisen & Werenfels 2011). This is perhaps one reason that we have seen a surge in the popularity of reciprocal frames as a research topic over the past two decades. Another probable factor is the development of more powerful computing tools tailored to design work. Even simple RF structures have complex geometries (Larsen 2008), and current work explores multiple-unit RF systems that would have been virtually impossible to model (let alone analyze) with the tools available 20 years ago

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