Timber Joint Connections, Generative Design Method: A Topological System Approach

Timber joint connections have been applied as a primary building construction, using concave and convex shapes to connect two or more elements. This research investigated the possibility of using graph-based theory knowledge to analyse timber joint connections. A topological extraction system was developed using Topologic and Karamba3D in Grasshopper. A collection of timber joints was analysed, and the topological relationships, load distribution, and shared face of connections were extracted. The proposed system generates an informational graph integrated with external simulation results. Moreover, in this study, a rule-based generative design approach has also been explored in generating complex timber structures. In this paper, a topological extraction system with external software implementation was developed, and generative design was explored to maximise the potential of the timber frame structure.