#grasshopper

Here is a design exercise I’ve been giving to students. It aims to familiarize students with the concept of dataflow diagrams used in Grasshopper. Dataflow is a different concept than conventional computer programming. Here is a good comparison between control flow and dataflow languages. In most educational settings (such as courses and workshops) we concentrate on the fundamental issue of dataflow management via design projects. This requires us to think about a design exercise of dataflow diagrams. In the most…

Today, we have studied creating complex robot programs manually again. Platonic solids were the subject of this study. Students tried to create a sequence of robot moves that produces a Platonic solid out of a 17cm EPS cube. We simply call this the robotic hotwire cutting polyhedra exercise. However, the size of our hotwire cutter became one of the problems because of its risk of crashing. We crashed several times but managed to cut some polyhedra at the end of…

Today in the Digital Fabrication course, we examined digital-physical translations utilizing the robots add-on for Grasshopper. Students learn how to get coordinate data from a physical environment, use it in the digital model and apply it to a robot motion. We aimed to dig chopsticks into an EPS block by using a special wooden tool called “Chopstick Digger”. In the first hour of the class, we attached the “pointer” tool, which is already calibrated to the robot. Students used “Actual…

In the Digital Fabrication course, we are in the middle of a sea, full of technical details, and students need motivation. This is why I felt I should do something simple and educational but funny at the same time; a “kissing the cube” exercise. The planned exercise was about programming the robot to touch every facet of a cube without colliding with it. Of course, we couldn’t manage to kiss all the facets due to the limitation of the robot’s…

Today, we started learning Robots add-on for Grasshopper. The first two codes we experimented with were similar to the first week’s jogging exercises. In the first one called “axial jogging”, we had 6 number sliders to control the angles of the axes. Every number slider generates values between -Pi and +Pi. These numbers are joined into a text by adding a comma in between. Then, Create program and Simulate Program components of the Robots plug-in are used to convert this…

In this short study, I generated Rumi Improvizations. The rumi motif, prevalent in traditional Turkish decorative arts like tilings, window lattices, and fabrics, features a round shape with a comma-like body. Despite resembling stylized leaves, rumis have zoomorphic origins. Rumi compositions depicted stylized animal figures, including birds, lions, deer, fish, and mythical creatures like dragons and Simurg. They symbolized strength, fertility, and the eternal struggle between good and evil. The oldest rumî-like animal shapes were discovered on rugs found in…

Here is a short series of videos showing the basic usage of Ladybug tools in a canopy design. So, I prepared this for my Parametric Design Systems elective course. Then, I encouraged my students to design their own canopies utilizing a similar Ladybug workflow in Grasshopper. In this first video, I am building a test surface in Grasshopper. I use the Graph Mapper component to derive 3D points and Interpolated curves. Finally, the EdgeSrf component is used to model the…

Anemone components are still working great, extending the abilities of Grasshopper. Here, I studied a space-filling (or plane-filling) fractal called the Gosper-Peano Curve. You should be very careful about the number of iterations (the N input). Because it can crash your Rhino if you change it to more significant numbers. Also, you should have Anemone components installed in order to run this definition. The generator curve is a special one. This website explains the generation of the curve from the…

COMMON action GARDENS I is an urban garden structure that is exhibited and still in use in Karaalioglu Park as part of the 3rd Architecture Biennial Programme in Antalya. These structures are injected in formal park layouts as edible gardens whose aim is to support the “preserve, sustain, and share” concept and to bring people together while producing. These gardens organize sustainable models for living by integrating raised beds, planting holes, water bowls, compost holes, seedboxes, tool pots, niches for…

Together with Serkan Uysal, we pubished a comprehensive guide to Grasshopper. The book is in Turkish and is currently published by Pusula. Grasshopper (GH) is a plug-in running on the Rhinoceros (Rhino) modeling software. It is used for algorithmic form-finding and real-time parametric modeling. This book presents techniques aimed at architects, interior designers, industrial product designers, jewelry designers, and anyone interested in exploring parametric and algorithmic modeling for hobby purposes. Anyone who wishes to discover dynamic and unconventional geometric forms…