The Process (3-Units)

I decided to go with a 180 degree enclosed stage cover for my design that resembles the opening of a conch shell or a cornucopia. The design with the open ribs would also allow for amazing shadows and the potential for very interesting light shows.

Creating the Base Curves

I started by creating the base bottom, middle, and top curves. The starting parameters were the same for each curve so that the had the same starting, ending, and interval points. This is also where the width of the stage cover can be parametrically controlled. The bottom curve is parametric and controls the structures depth. The middle curve remains stagnant to provide a series of points to create the parabolic ribs. The top curve is parametric and controls the structures height.

Generating a Sine Wave

The next step of the process was converting one of the parabolic curves to a sine wave to create a ribbed effect. The number of wave definition points, number of waves, and wave amplitude were all given sliders to adjust the sine wave parametrically.

Bringing the Final Curves Together

The final bottom, middle, and top curves were then combined into a list to organize for the next steps.

Creating Ribs and Adaptive Beams

To create the ribs, I generated a series of points along the curves and generated a list of 3 points which was then transposed. This was used to create parabolic lines that served as the ribs. The amount of ribs was adjustable. Adaptive beams were then placed using the list of 3 points. The type of adaptive beam was also adjustable.

Creating Rectangles and Adaptive Panels

After creating the ribs, I created a series of points along the ribs and created a list of quadrilaterals between ribs. This list of quadrilaterals was flattened and used as the points for placing adaptive panels. The number of points along the ribs was adjustable to create larger or smaller panels. The type of panel was also left adjustable.

Final Mapping