Intended users
This tool will be targeted more towards the partners to structural engineering firms, as it will be a tool that simplifies the structural engineering portion of a building design. For example, this tool may be particularly helpful for architects who want to get a quick understanding of a structure’s layout of columns or slab thicknesses, while still making sure the design will be valid under ASCE 7-22 codes. It may also be helpful for structural engineers who want a quick check for simple member sizing of a whole structure, before fully diving into detailed calculations for a project. Overall, this tool can streamline the design communication process between different stakeholders in a building project and save time.
Need you’re trying to provide a solution or support for
This tool will simplify calculations and structural checks for simple rectangular shaped column/bay layout. The design decision currently takes a lot of time when initial designs go between the owner, architect, structural engineers, etc. This tool can simplify that first initial structural framing design process and give helpful dimension and cost estimates early on before spending costs on hiring the engineer/architect/contractor, etc.
Original Inputs, Constants, and Outputs from Module 7
Inputs
- Max Column spacing
- Max beam spacing
- Total area load
- Chosen steel section (same for all beams, girders, columns)
Constants
- Max Width & Max Length of structure footprint
- Height of structure
- Steel Section Properties (weight per food, moment of inertia, section depth)
Outputs
- Beam Deflection
- Maximum Open Floor Area
- Structural Weight
- Number of Connections
Debugging Module 7
For debugging Module 7, I updated connections calculation of girders, columns, and beams to count correctly. I also updated counting for lengths of beams, girders, and columns for structural weight and connection count calculations. I then reorganized grouping for all logic to be more clear. I started splitting up groups to better accommodate the new inputs and outputs I wanted to add for Module 9.
New Additions for Module 9
Added Inputs
- Steel section for Beams
- Steel section for Girders
- Steel section for Columns
- Height of structure
- Earthquake Risk Location (Update to be Location rather than intensity)
- Allowable Soil Bearing Strength
Added Constants
- Steel Section Properties for Beams (weight per food, moment of inertia, section depth)
- Corresponding Peak Ground Acceleration per Earthquake risk location (per ASCE Hazard Tool)
- Girder + Beam Connection Cost
- Girder + Column Connection Cost
Added Outputs
- Girder Deflection
- Cost of Connections depending on type (Updated from Number of Connection Costs)
- Footing Size
- Frame Drift (Updated from Column Cantilever Deflection)
Underlying logic of the model you’ll implement
I am going to expand on my Generative Design Study in Dynamo from Module 7. I want to add some additional design variables listed above. Currently, my logic consists of beam deflection calculations using simply supported beam equations based on area loads and the beam section properties. To get the girder deflections, the reaction forces from the beam are applied as point loads on a simply supported girder, using the selected girder section properties. These deflections should be checked against ASCE 7-22 deflection standards.
The footing design dimensions are based on the end reactions at the girders. The largest axial force occurs in the center columns, so the design is based off of that scenario, alongside the site soil properties.
The structural weight is calculated based on the steel sections selected for the columns, girders, and beams, multiplied by the total length of each section type across the entire framing design. The structural weight is then used in the calculation of the frame drift, using the weight multiplied by earthquake acceleration (chosen by location of the structure) to get the applied force. The frame stiffness comes from the selected column and its structural properties.
Finally, the total connection costs is based on the number of beams and girders framing into the section. Beam-Girder connections are usually cheaper and easier to install, while girder to columns are more expensive. The number of each connection is counted and multiplied by the cost of each kind of connection.
For the amount of open floor space, it is calculated with the maximum column spacing selected, which should be the only maximized output while all others are minimized for structural performance.
Actual Timeline
I first spent about 3 hours debugging and reorganizing my initial Module 7 Generative Study. Some items I had to update is the counting of member lengths and connection joint amounts since the visual generation of the frame slightly differs from the actual amount. The changes I made are listed in the proposal.
Then, I spend 5 hours adding new inputs, outputs, and their according logic, which is also listed in the updated proposal. I spent another 2 hours debugging the new updates and checking that the generative model ran properly. Some issue that came up was that during the generative studies, there were issues with columns not properly extruding, so I went back to debug it.
Throughout the course of working on the project, I spent about 1.5 hours documenting the changes and updating the proposal to show the differences between what I had in Module 7 vs. Module 9. Finally, I spent 1.5 hours creating the deliverables for the project, such as creating the video demo that includes information captioning.
This tool may be developed in the future to address the abilities below
- Multiple floor calculations → Extending the frame to multiple floors, which better depicts full construction costs and lateral seismic loading effects
- Multiple Materials (expand to reinforced concrete, timber, etc.) → Offer materials such as reinforced concrete and timber to weigh the costs to build depending on the member. All three material options would work in this case of a short structure
- More accurate Beam/Girder/Column extrusion cross sections → For steel sections, for example, extrude actual W-shape profiles to better show relative sizes between selected members, and also relative floor height to slab depth
- Calculate Shear and Moment forces on beam/girders/columns → Run more structural analysis on key frame members that can be used to check chosen member selections. This tool can be helpful for streamlining the structural design and analysis needs to be all done in one application
- Complete Framing for different footprint shapes (not just rectangular) → Since structures usually have more varied shapes, the tool can take a profile drawn in Revit and run general framing design based on the user-defined shape.
- Load larger library of available steel sections → Provide more sections that so that design can be better optimized within the tool itself, which will help with making structural weight and construction cost outputs more accurate.
This tool allows users to run quick analysis on rectangular footprint with steel framing. Calculations for member deflections can quickly be generated and checked against ASCE code requirements. Additionally, other structural and architectural design values can be generated to pick a cost-efficient, ideal framing design.
Sample Generative Study with Scatterplot comparison to understand tradeoffs of different inputs and outputs.
Video is also available in ACC folder