IAAC — Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (MRAC) · ACADEMIC · FAB LAB · RESEARCH
Robotic Gaudi
Vision-Guided Robotic Tile Laying
- Context
- IAAC — Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (MRAC) — Academic Research
- Role
- Parametric Modeling & OpenCV Detection Pipeline
- Year
- 2024
- Practice
- FAB LAB · RESEARCH
- Location
- Barcelona, Spain
- Status
- COMPLETED
Overview
Developed in IAAC's MRAC Workshop 2.2, the project explores the practical application of robotics in building-skin assembly, focusing on automating the precision task of tile laying: a complete robotic pipeline from pattern design and data processing to path planning and robot execution.
Responsibilities
- Parametric pattern modelling in Rhino + Grasshopper (image grayscale, attractor curves, geometric structures; intuitive vs Voronoi vs rhombus comparison)
- OpenCV tile-colour detection and physical-data analysis
Methodology
- Components pre-fabricated by CNC cutting; automated assembly installs coloured tiles onto the target surface
- Depth camera scans tile colour, size and orientation; image data processed with OpenCV (Python) and ROS
- Scan data streamed into Grasshopper for real-time path adjustment; UR10e picks and places each tile
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