Biomimicry in Urban Space
Location : Bengaluru, India
Tools: Sketching, AutoCad, SketchUp, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign
Brief: A design project which explores the concept of biomimicry in domestic spaces and systems.
Water is the lifeline for the human race. Our earliest civilizations were established near rivers, and ever since all of our progress has relied on it. But now, water is increasingly becoming a luxury, and the efficient use of water is of the utmost importance. To design a space, which is capable of doing the same, will be a huge step ahead in the preservation of our already depleting resources.
Biomimicry is an approach to innovation that seeks sustainable solutions to human challenges by emulating nature’s time-tested patterns and strategies. The goal is to create products, processes, and policies—new ways of living—that are well-adapted to life on earth over the long haul.
The core idea is that nature has already solved many of the problems we are grappling with. Animals, plants, and microbes are the consummate engineers. After billions of years of research and development, failures are fossils, and what surrounds us is the secret to survival.
Before proceeding to ideation, I listed down the objectives of the design project:
How do I manage water efficiently?
How do I generate sufficient water for the needs of the inhabitants?
How can I harvest, store and manage water in such a way that there is always enough water to fulfill all the requirements?
Keeping these in mind, the following design parameters were
formed:
• Multipurpose use of available surfaces
• Increase surface area by a large number of small units
• Using hydrophilic and hydrophobic materials
• Using surface texture to direct flow of water
• Using spiral shape to maximize surface area
• Using grooves to increase surface area
• Using grooves to facilitate transportation
• Using surrounding temperature to one’s advantage
• Using spiral shape to minimize surface evaporation
• Placing the structure against the wind direction to capture maximum amount of water vapour
• Using various heights and levels to capture maximum wind
• Using gravity wherever possible, to reduce energy used in transportation
• Using the same material for multiple uses.
• Using existing and under-tapped resources
• Usage of a combination of renewable energies to make the best of the available resources.
• Replicable design of the systems
The organisms which became inspiration for the project are as follows:
The ideation process is illustrated below:
The interventions in the house are designed in such a way that they are able to generate and store sufficient water for its needs. The water harvesting system is divided in two parts: the fog-harvesting structure and the fog and rainwater harvesting roof.
The primary function of the roof is to collect rain water. Along with this function, the roof is also capable of harvesting fog, albeit when the fog is thicker and blows at a lower height. The roofs are intentionally placed against the existing wind direction, to capture maximum fog.
