What for many would be just a leaf flat, For Jesús D’Alessandro, director of the School of Architecture of the Ibero-American University (Unibe) and the Institute of Design for the Tropics, it became an opportunity to rethink the way in which they are designed and manufactured. structures transformable.
His first patented project, a transformable dome which can function as a large tent, Constructed from right triangles with fractal geometry, it consists of a flat surface that, through a repeating geometric pattern, can contract at the edge and expand in the center until it becomes a cover.
That structure, which functions as a repeated pattern in all its parts, causes the sheet to “remember” its shape and open precisely when the unfolding process begins.
D’Alessandro explains that this contraction peripheral It causes a natural elevation in the center, which gives rise to a structure without the need for complex mechanisms.
The dome can be activated manually or mechanically, depending on the type of technology applied. Its greatest strength is versatility: can be again flat or a dome when the user wants it.
Dome Features
The main use of the dome is to offer a fast, light and versatile solution to create temporary covered spaces without the need for complex structures.
Thanks to its ability to go from a flat sheet to a three dimensional coveryou can use it as a tent, shelter, shade area, temporary work space or temporary storage.
Its transformable design allows transport it easily, install it in minutes and reuse it as many times as necessary. This makes it an ideal alternative for outdoor activities, events, emergencies or projects where you require removable structures with low environmental impact.
“Depending on the type of sheet that you are going to use and the type of need that you want to satisfy or address with the invention, you can add specific layers to that sheet and make it isolable of the high temperatures and help it capture solar energy,” he explained.
“It is an innovation that has a lot potential”, says D’Alessandro, who highlights that the modularity of the system allows materials to be recycled and parts to be manufactured from components. reusable.
As part of the use of this transformable structure, the dome will be installed on the campus of Unibe for your utilization. It will serve as a space where people can feel below.
Call to innovate
Patented in 2022 for the National Industrial Property Office (Onapi), he deployable dome of right triangles is part of Unibe’s commitment to local innovation. The university appears as co-owner of the registry, since the research is carried out within its facilities.
For D’Alessandro, this alliance between academia and inventiveness is fundamental: “Innovation is not something that belongs to a country or a culture or a continent solutions, proposing new ways of seeing issues and solutions to problems.”
