While Rock Print appeared massive, it was relatively lightweight due to the use of foam-glass gravel. Two years later, the research breakthroughs are responding equally strongly to an ecological and technological agenda: No additives, no substitutes, no mortar, no formwork, just real string and real gravel. It is the purest yet most highly advanced presentation of the robotic fabrication of jammed gravel held in place by computed and robotically placed string patterns to form architectural structures. It is a solid massif built up from loose rock: a Manistone.

Credits

Gramazio Kohler Research, ETH Zürich

Team: Petrus Aejmelaeus-Lindström and Gergana Rusenova (project lead), Ammar Mirjan, Romana Rust, Hannes Mayer, Fabio Gramazio, Matthias Kohler

In cooperation with: Prof. Hans J. Herrmann, Dr. Falk K. Wittel with Pavel Iliev (Institute for Building Materials, ETH Zurich)

Project funding: ETH Zürich Foundation

Selected experts: Self-Assembly Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

About the artists

Gramazio Kohler Research
Since its inception in 2005 the research group at ETH Zürich led by Prof. Matthias Kohler and Prof. Fabio Gramazio has been at the forefront of robotics and digital fabrication in architecture. With their robotic laboratories and work ranging from prototypes to building elements, they have inspired architects and researchers alike to explore the capacities of the industrial robot as a universal tool of the digital age.

Read more: starts-prize.aec.at.

This project is presented in the framework of the STARTS Prize 2017. STARTS Prize received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 732019.

Participants can work with the Experience Workshop’s 4Dframe and ReBOT kit, which makes it possible to tinker together robots out of straws or empty boxes and bottles, which can be controlled wirelessly by a mobile phone. For all of this you do not need anything but a pair of scissors, duct tape and some recyclable materials. GeoGebra apps provided by the Johannes Kepler University will be available for perfecting designs and calculating different properties.

During the program, Experience Workshop is documenting and displaying all the stories told by the brainy builders about the robot they need the most.

The Powerbrain is the central control element, the heart and mind of this construction kit. Movement modules make it possible to implement various forms of locomotion—driving, tipping, spinning or gripping. The movement modules are driven by servomotors; the energy is delivered by the Powerbrain’s battery. Sensor modules react to light sources and objects in the installation space. Tiny passive components called Cubies let you custom-design your robot.

All elements are easily interconnected without the use of cables, so kids as young as six can build mobile, interactive robots and get a playful introduction to mechanics, sensors and energy.

The signals and sounds of the robots are picked up by a stethoscope and amplified with ultrasound loudspeakers. The project playfully reflects on the interaction between human and technology, and in light of the constant further development of robots and artificial intelligence, it prompts a discussion about who is ultimately the master: the human or the machine?

Credits

www.mediaambitiontokyo.jp/en/rekionvoice

PRIA, VÖSI (AT)

Hardly a day goes by without a news story about self-driving cars. Companies are investing huge sums in the development of autonomous vehicles. Ford recently paid $1 billion to acquire a company that specializes in R&D on systems for self-driving cars. Research nationwide and throughout the EU is focusing on autonomous driving. All major carmakers and a few newcomers such as Google and Apple aim to bring out a self-driving car by 2021.

RoboCar is an initiative to spotlight some trendy, cool technology to make young people aware of what is happening now and what future prospects are emerging in the ICT (IT, communication and technology) sector. Interest among young people in careers in the ICT sector is still far too low in comparison to personnel requirements.

There are too few IT apprentices, secondary technical school students interested in IT, and ICT companies offering training in this field. Our aim is to promote enthusiasm among young people for careers in the ICT sector, to interest them in training in this field and to acquaint them with the types of jobs available. Our aim is to promote better contacts between young people who plan to pursue higher education and the ICT sector in general and the VÖSI companies in particular.

Workshop with Young People from the BFI Upper Austria

Self-Driving Cars—Model Construction and Programming

The Ars Electronica Center has been collaborating with the BFI (Careers Advancement Institute) since spring 2017 to give youngsters the opportunity to work on projects in conjunction with the Ars Electronica Festival. The aim is to open up bright prospects for these young people and to strengthen their self-confidence as a solid foundation for their occupational future. In five sessions, the youngsters get support from experts in converting a remote-controlled model car into a self-driving car.

Credits

VÖSI – The Austrian Software Industry Association represents the interests of Austria’s top IT companies. VÖSI was founded in 1986 and currently includes about 30 large and medium-size software and IT companies. Without a healthy software industry, Austria as a business location would be in danger of becoming an auxiliary workshop of more innovative countries.

PRIA – Practical Robotics Institute Austria: Our vision is to prepare and motivate the next generation of researchers, engineers and scientists, and to be the go-to address for pedagogical applications in robotics and ICT.

The Glaciator robot helps glaciers to grow again by compacting and crystallizing the snow into firn (the intermediate state between snow and glacier ice), thus accelerating the ice formation process. This means the glaciers can grow the ice mass again, which they have lost due to climate change.

The Glaciators’ movements may be awkward, but they are steady in their quest. They are a symbol of the utopian ideal, a concept applied to all undertakings that seem impossible. With this art project Joaquín Fargas wants to encourage scientists of all disciplines to try out unconventional methods as well, in order to find new solutions for global problems.

Credits

www.joaquinfargas.com/en/works

In general, because of its lack of accuracy 3D printing is not suitable for making transmission mechanisms. However, in this project, we realized smooth, flexible movements by developing original transmission mechanisms that use 3D printing characteristics such as a complex surface and a flexible structure. These original mechanisms are combined on 3D CAD and various robots with different movements are developed. This work shows the possibility for designing motion and transmission mechanisms using 3D printing.

Credits

Designer: Hiroshi Sugihara
Project Director: Shunji Yamanaka
Collaborators: Satoshi Tanigawa, Kotaro Tanimichi, Ryuma Niiyama

In 2016 in Taiwan there was an average of 23 students per primary school class.

“When people go to school in Taiwan, they don’t have much power to decide what they want to read and study. It is like being controlled by a huge invisible gear. The authorities’ education policy prioritizes industry value and competitiveness. The government wants to promote a money-making machine rather than self-exploration and humanistic thinking. This is a complete realization of dogmatic rules and state apparatus.” (Lien-Cheng Wang)

The machines read an extract from The Analects of Confucius—a book that has influenced Asian countries for thousands of years in ethics, philosophy, and morality. The content reads: “The Master said, ‘Is it not pleasant to learn with a constant perseverance and application?’ ‘Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters?’ ‘Is he not a man of complete virtue, who feels no discomposure though men may take no note of him?’” The essence of the book is a metaphor of ancient China, which wanted to control surrounding countries for thousands of years. Reading Plan creates a space of discussion localization, education, thoughts and state apparatus.

Credits

Supported by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City Government

In cooperation with Johannes Kepler University, we launch Next Generation JKU—a series of talks to give outstanding young scholars working in engineering and science the opportunity to utilize the cutting-edge technology available in Deep Space 8K at the Ars Electronica Center to present their research.

Talks

THU September 07. – 10:30 AM
DI Dr. Christoph Koutschan (mathematics): Mathematical Evidence with the Computer

FRI September 08. – 10:30 AM
Dr. Simon Schneiderbauer (mechatronics): Billard in a Blast Furnace

SAT September 09. – 10:30 AM
Dr. Wolfgang Schöfberger (chemistry): Towards Artificial Molecular Robots (AMR)

SUN September 10. – 10:30 AM
Dr. Robert Zillich (physics): Planets, Atoms and Quantum Mechanics

All talks will be in English.

The viewer can experience this surface adapting to the environment, inviting in light, moisture and sound. The wing-like units of the surface are modular and can thus be replaced or expanded. It is also possible even to mass-produce cheap individual units using printing technology. The information necessary for production and the design files for this project are published open-access on Github.

Credits

This work was produced with the support of the JST ERATO Kawahara Universal Information Network Project.