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Our Designs

The Elephant Skin, Namib Desert Beetle and Termite Mounds make up the triumvirate of biological strategists which have been the foci of bioSEA’s research. Learn more about them in the biomimicry design toolkit. Here’s a preview.

Elephant Skin

Elephant Skin

Namib Desert Beetle

Namib Desert Beetle

Termite Mounds

Termite Mounds

Horizon Scan

Case studies from around the world

Exemplary biomimicry designs for thermoregulation. Six designs have been featured here, a more extensive list of case studies can be found in the Toolkit. Please note that the examples showcased here are NOT designed by bioSEA.

Meristem Wall by Lund University

Meristem Wall by Lund University

Votu Hotel by GCP Arcquitectura & Urbanismo

Votu Hotel by GCP Arcquitectura & Urbanismo

Patterned Flow by SUTD

Patterned Flow by SUTD

Self-Adapting Glass by NTU

Self-Adapting Glass by NTU

Fungal-Like Adhesive Material (FLAM) by SUTD

Fungal-Like Adhesive Material (FLAM) by SUTD

AquaWeb by NexLoop

AquaWeb by NexLoop

Templates

6-Step Design Process

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Useful Books & Links

Books
book1

Innovation Inspired by Nature by Janine M. Benyus

book2

Biomimicry Resources Handbook by Dayna Baumeister

book3

Biomimicry in Architecture 2nd Edition by Micheal Pawlyn

book4

Biomimetic Research for Architecture and Building Construction by Knippers Jan, Nickel Klaus G. and Speck Thomas

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Elephant Skin

How can patterns on elephant skin help us keep buildings cool? Strategy — The bioSEA team has designed modular façade tiles inspired by the bumpy and textured skin of elephants for better cooling. The tiles combine two key mechanisms for passive cooling (self-shading and evaporative cooling) and capillary action for water management. The textured tiles have been simulated for performance benefits and prototypes have been developed and tested in three materials – gypsum, mycelium and clay. The tiles are available in three sizes (10 cm x 10 cm, 15 cm x 15 cm, 20 cm x 20cm)  for application in the industry on real walls. They can be placed standalone or integrated with other green wall designs.
  • Functions Addressed

    Heat Dissipation, Limit Heat Gain, Water Capture

View Project

Namib Desert Beetle

How can beetle surface geometry help us capture water from the air? Strategy — The bioSEA team has created tiles by mimicking the geometry of the beetle native to the Namibian Desert. The beetle has tiny bumps on its back that increase the speed of water droplet formation as the beetle ‘fog basks’ to drink water out of fog in its foggy desert home. This pattern has been mimicked at the appropriate scale and tested across various bump shapes and sizes that optimizes condensation and is easy to manufacture. These tiles help with humidity control and water capture and can be deployed across climates.
  • Functions Addressed

    Humidity Control, Water Capture

View Project

Termite Mounds

How can termite mound branching systems help us ventilate buildings better? Strategy —  Inspired by the ventilation system of termite mounds, the bioSEA team has created a modular façade wall panel. The breathable panels use Murray’s law based branching structure to improve ventilation between the indoor and outdoor environments and better dissipate heat. The wall deploys a central tube at its core combined with hemispherical cups on either side that enables the panel to better tap on to dynamic wind flows and thereby increase overall air flow in the indoor environment especially at low wind speeds. It also enables a more balanced spatial mixing of wind within the space. The panels are available in standard brick dimensions of 65 mm (height), 102.5 mm (length ) and 215 mm (width).
  • Functions Addressed

    Improve Ventilation, Heat Dissipation

View Project

Meristem Wall by Lund University

Inspired by the vent structure and reticulated branching network in termite mounds, Meristem Wall is a prototype for a 3D printed building envelope. Made out of sand and fabricated through binder-jet sand 3d printing, it features a dynamically controllable network of integrated air channels that allow a fluid relationship between inside and outside. The channels can be controlled through an embedded system of sensors and actuators to enable selective transport of heat and moisture. The wall integrates functional lighting and electricity, windows, and a custom computer-controlled knitted textile interior. The extensive channels in the wall created intertwined surfaces, envisioned to provide a habitat for flora and fauna. The design views the wall as a membrane rather than a barrier, mediating inside/outside environments for multi-species cohabitation.
  • Location

    Lund, Sweden

  • Year

    2021

  • Inspiration

    Termite Mounds

  • Creator

    Goidea A., Popescu, M. & Andreen, D.

  • Application Scale

    Wall Panel

  • Functions Addressed

    Improve ventilation, Surface for flora & fauna, Acoustics Management

View Project

Votu Hotel by GCP Arcquitectura & Urbanismo

Prairie dogs design their burrows in such a way that a continuous air circulation is established by creating a system of passages with inlets & outlets at different heights. This generates low and high pressure areas, keeping a cooling air flow through their burrows during summer. Inspired by the burrows, the bungalows at Votu used computer modelling to strategically place openings to allow for optimal natural ventilation. The Saguaro cactus grows with long spines and accordion-like folds that offer shade and cool the air in shaded pockets. Such a form creates circulation around the cactus that minimises heat absorption.The bungalows placed self-shading slats on the guardrails inspired by the cactus that provide further cooling benefits.
  • Location

    Bahia, Brazil

  • Year

    2016

  • Inspiration

    Prairie dogs, Saguaro cactus

  • Creator

    GCP Arquitectura & Urbanismo

  • Application Scale

    Building

  • Functions Addressed

    Improve ventilation, Heat dissipation, Limit heat gain

View Project

Patterned Flow by SUTD

Inspired by the vent structure and reticulated branching network in termite mounds, Meristem Wall is a prototype for a 3D printed building envelope. Made out of sand and fabricated through binder-jet sand 3d printing, it features a dynamically controllable network of integrated air channels that allow a fluid relationship between inside and outside. The channels can be controlled through an embedded system of sensors and actuators to enable selective transport of heat and moisture. The wall integrates functional lighting and electricity, windows, and a custom computer controlled knitted textile interior. The extensive channels in the wall created intertwined surfaces, envisioned to provide a habitat for flora and fauna. The design views the wall as a membrane rather than a barrier, mediating inside/outside environments for multi-species cohabitation.
  • Location

    Singapore

  • Year

    2020

  • Inspiration

    Starfish larvae

  • Creator

    Singapore University of Technology & Design (Tan, Y.Y., Yogiaman C., Tracy K., Alvardo P. V. Y)

  • Application Scale

    Building

  • Functions Addressed

    Improve ventilation

View Project

Self-Adapting Glass by NTU

Tetra Fish have chromatophores in their skin, which contain arrayed guanine (basic build- ing block of DNA/RNA) platelets that can selectively reflect light of a certain wavelength and thereby act as a photonic crystal. The selective reflection property generates direction-dependent vivid colours, similar to butterfly wing colours. The glass is coated with layers of a Vanadium Dioxide (VO2) nanoparticles composite – a reliable smart thermo- chromic window material due to its optical stability during transition in the visible range. The coating can also regulate solar heating and radiative cooling.
  • Location

    Singapore

  • Year

    2022

  • Inspiration

    Tetra fish

  • Creator

    Singapore University of Technology & Design (Ke,Y. et al.)

  • Application Scale

    Material

  • Functions Addressed

    Limit Heat Gain

View Project

Fungal-Like Adhesive Material (FLAM) by SUTD

FLAM is inspired from the walls of fungus-like oomycetes (a type of parasite) that is reproduced by introducing small amounts of chitin between cellulose fibres. The resulting FLAM is a strong, lightweight and inexpensive composite material. The raw materials – cellulose and chitin are common natural polymers and industrial byproducts that provide strength and structural integrity. The material can be molded to form 3D structures, using woodworking techniques.
  • Inspiration

    Fungus-like Oomecytes

  • Creator

    Ferment Lab & Singapore University of Technology & Design

  • Location

    Singapore

  • Application Scale

    Material

  • Functions Addressed

    Structural Efficiency, Material Optimization

View Project

AquaWeb by NexLoop

Epiphytes take moisture from the air and make it accessible to neighbouring organisms. Spider webs can collect water from humid air due to alternating threads that differ in thickness. Ice plant leaves are covered in bladder cells, which act like small water reservoirs. Honeycombs are considered the most space-efficient structures and provide optimal structural strength. Deriving inspiration from multiple organisms, AquaWeb consists of modular, hexagon-shaped structures with fine spider-web like meshing to optimize water collection and condensation. It also deploys ice-plant-like bladder cells for water collection. Once assembled, the design captures and stores natural sources of water (rain, fog and dew) that can be used locally.
  • Location

    USA

  • Year

    2016-2021

  • Inspiration

    Epiphytes, Spiders

  • Creator

    NexLoop

  • Application Scale

    Wall Panel

  • Functions Addressed

    Water Capture, Material Optimization

View Project
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