Form study under the guidance of Prof. Gabriele N. Reichert to transform a 7³ cm³ cube into a complexer object in 6 steps, whereby the process should stay logical and changes between neighbouring steps should be equally big (These are given rules). One of my ideas was to make a techno-mechanical form that is all rotationally symmetrical, dynamical and homogeneous, between elegance and bizarreness. (Jan 2006)
The basic principle is to alternately cut the corners and turn them 10° clockwise. The cuts have to have a curvature, otherwise the second innermost pieces would collide with each other while turning. I first thought of a conic surface, which is easy to make on a lathe. But conic sections (in this case hyperbolas) disturb the homogeneity, so I went for a sphere cut. This makes quick mock-up building impossible, so most developments were done in CAD.
Working with CAD is parameterized, I for instance used some mathematics to help making design decisions, in the belief that mathematically logical forms should also meet the eye. So are the cube’s edges loosely divided in arithmetic progression (ln), with small pieces being thicker and large pieces being thinner, making them appear equal in visual weight. While balancing homogeneity and dynamics, the radiuses of the outermost cutting sphere (R1) and the innermost cutting sphere (R6) are manually specified, whereby Rn (1≤n≤6) is then defined by following formulas, which mean all 6 radiuses are affected by ln, and exponential in relation.
Resin model #6:
