AUTOMATED CONSTRUCTION BY CONTOUR CRAFTING AND RELATED ROBOTICS, construction automation

1. AUTOMATED CONSTRUCTION BY
CONTOUR CRAFTING AND
RELATED ROBOTICS
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2. CONTENTS
• INTRODUCTION
• DRAWBACKS OF CONVENTIONAL CONSTRUCTION METHODS
• CURRENT STATUS OF AUTOMATION IN CONSTRUCTION SITES
• CONTOUR CRAFTING
• FEATURES OF CONTOUR CRAFTING
• FEATURES OF AUTOMATED CONSTRUCTION
• EXTRATERRESTRIAL APPLICATIONS
• ADVANTAGES
• CONCLUSION
• REFERENCES
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3. INTRODUCTION
• Current “cast-in-place” construction process has been used in
the field since Roman ages
• It still remains labour intense
• Problems in the areas of productivity, quality, safety, and
skilled labour shortages
• To address these issues, various types of automation and
robotics technologies have been proposed and implemented
• Require a paradigm shift in process technology
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4. DRAWBACKS OF CONVENTIONAL
CONSTRUCTION METHODS
• Slow
• Labour-intensive and inefficient
• Wasteful and emission causing
• Corruption prone
• Costly and always over budget
• hazardous
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source: http://blog.willis.com/2012/05

5. CURRENT STATUS OF AUTOMATION IN
CONSTRUCTION SITES
• Since 18 years, construction automation and robotics have
been implemented in the United States, Japan and China
• Japanese and Chinese construction companies have their own
research centers with sophisticated equipments
• Single task robots that replace activities are mainly used
• Introducing robots at construction sites has contributed to
productivity, safety, and quality improvements
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6. CONTOUR CRAFTING
• Type of 3D printing technology
• “Addictive fabrication” technology using computer control
• Building layer by layer till 3D model is completed
• Combination of extrusion and filling processes
• Uses CAD-CAM
• Able to do automated plumbing, electrical network etc..
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7. CONTOUR CRAFTING (contd…)
A CC machine for fabricating concrete wall
source: http://www.rapidreadytech.com
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8. 8
A CC MACHINE
Source: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tKlPqvV83gY/T5BhWyTTOA

9. APPLICATION IN CONSTRUCTION SITES
Construction of conventional buildings using CC
source: http://3dprint.com
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10. APPLICATION IN CONSTRUCTION SITES
(contd…)
• Robotic system is installed at the site
• Colony of houses with different designs can be constructed on
a single run
• Conventional structures can built by integrating the CC
machine
• Foundation needs to be constructed conventionally
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11. APPLICATION IN CONSTRUCTION SITES
(contd…)
Construction of adobe buildings using CC
source: https://calearth.org
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12. FEATURES OF CONTOUR CRAFTING
• Design Flexibility: allows to design structures with functional
and exotic architectural geometries
• Multiple Materials: multiple materials can be fed through CC
nozzle whose quantity can be controlled
– hence building structures containing varying amount of
different compounds in different regions is possible
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13. FEATURES OF CONTOUR CRAFTING (contd…)
• Utility Conduits: utility conduits may be built into the walls of a
building structure precisely as dictated by the CAD data
Complex wall section
source: http://www.truelook.com/blog/category/construction-corner/ 13

14. FEATURES OF CONTOUR CRAFTING (contd…)
• Paint-Ready Surfaces : Regardless of the choice of materials,
the surface quality in CC is such that no further surface
preparation would be needed for painting surfaces
– Indeed an automated painting system can be integrated
• Smart Materials: elements such as strain sensors, floor and
wall heaters can be built into the structure
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15. FEATURES OF AUTOMATED
CONSTRUCTION
• Automated Reinforcement: robotic modular embedding of
steel mesh reinforcement into each layer may be devised
• Advanced materials such as fiber reinforced mortar can be
used
Automated reinforcement in CC
source: http://www.truelook.com/blog/category/construction-corner/ 15

16. FEATURES OF AUTOMATED
CONSTRUCTION (contd…)
• Automated tiling: robots can be used to spread the adhesive
material and place tiles accordingly
– This robotics system can be attached to the CC structure
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Automated tiling
source: http://www.truelook.com/blog/category/construction-corner/

17. FEATURES OF AUTOMATED
CONSTRUCTION (contd…)
• Automated plumbing and electrical work: presence of conduits in
the walls makes it possible to automate plumbing and electrical
works
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source: http://www.truelook.com/blog/category/construction-corner/

18. 18

19. source:http://inhabitat.com/12000-square-china/winsun-3dprint-mansion2/
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20. Buildings constructed using CC
source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2615076
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21. EXTRATERRESTRIAL APPLICATIONS
• Ability to construct support less structures
• Ability to use in-situ materials
• The lunar regolith, may be used for the construction of
landing base on the moon
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22. EXTRATERRESTRIAL APPLICATIONS (contd…)
Model of construction of lunar base using contour crafting
source: http://sservi.nasa.gov
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23. CONSTRUCTION COST
If Automated by CC Portion Due To
Short project length 20% - 25% Financing
No wastage of materials 25% - 30% Materials
less labour 45% - 55% Labour
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24. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
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25. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
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26. ADVANTAGES
• Economical
• Environmental friendly
• Great architectural flexibility
• High speed of construction
• No wastage of materials
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27. CONCLUSION
• Application in low income housing
• Emergency shelter construction
• Construction of structures with exotic architectural designs
• High speed and efficiency
• Promising new method in construction industry
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28. 28
Source: http://www.fastcodesign.com/3043245

29. 29
Source: http://www.thenational.ae/uae/tourism/vision-for-dubais-museum-of-the-future

30. 30
Source: http://www.thenational.ae/uae/tourism/vision-for-dubais-museum-of-the-future

31. REFERENCES
1. B. Khoshnevis and G. Bekey, “Automated Construction using
Contour Crafting – Applications on Earth and Beyond,” Proceedings
of the 19th International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in
Construction, Gaithersburg, Maryland (2002) 489-494. 14
2. B. Khoshnevis, innovative rapid prototyping process makes large
sized, smooth surfaced complex shapes in a wide variety of
materials, Materials Technology, 13:2 (1998) 52-63.
3. B. Khoshnevis, R. Russell, H. Kwon, & S. Bukkapatnam, Contour
Crafting – A Layered Fabrication Technique, Special Issue of IEEE
Robotics and Automation Magazine, 8:3 (2001-a) 33-42.
4. B. Khoshnevis, S. Bukkapatnam, H. Kwon, H., & J. Saito,
Experimental Investigation of Contour Crafting using Ceramics
Materials, Rapid Prototyping J., 7:1 (2001-b) 32-41
5. C. Balaguer, M. Abderrahim, S. et.al, Future Home: An Integrated
Construction Automation Approach, IEEE Robotics & Automation
Magazine (2002) 55-66.
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32. THANK YOU
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