Biomimicry Global design challenge 2020

WeFlant B I O M I M I C R Y

G L O B A L

From its beginnings, earth has been in constant change which is evidenced by the transformations and the evolution of species since life appeared in it. however human activity has caused climate change that drastically affect th life and biodiversity on the planet.

Our prototype of WEFLANT aim to reduce some of the impacts that is caused by the urbanization in the modern society and at the same time try to involve the advantage of biomimicry and achieve the sustainable development goals.

D E S I G N

C H A L L E N G E

Landscaper, Electrical Engineer

Architect

Architect

Master of Landscape, Tunghai University, Taiwan

Bachelor of Architecture, CEU Universidad San Pablo, Spain

Bachelor of Architecture, CEU Universidad San Pablo, Spain

Architect, Civil Engineer Master of Architecture, Tunghai University, Taiwan

GOAL : In , Taiwan lacked from proper food security, this led to double the number of hunger till the , were regularly .

means : - Achieving - Improving - Promoting - Reducting

In , there is only production . This makes the country due to the

.

referring to food , Today, more than suffer from acute hunger due to

, of whom about 135 million .

To create a , the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) aims to achieve food security for all and make sure that people have As cities are increasing in population, rural areas are getting more abandoned, especially in Taiwan. This flux of people towards the cities, is causing a . This is making people rent smaller dwellings as prices continue inflating.

The pandemic could put an additional at risk of suffering by the end of 2020, according to the World Food Program.

, providing livelihoods for of the global population.

ISSUE : One of the b iggest reasons b eh ind lim ited land is that has been underpinned by the in the world´s economy and in the proportion of gross world product and of workers . Globally, from this rapidly growing urban population, including food that is more energy-, land-, water- and greenhouse gas emission-intensive. But of urban dwellers .

• arable land was developed to be city area • decreased / wasted farmland • people abandon agriculture and move to urban

from the start of fall to the arrival of the Plum Rains in May and June, and they have become the new normal over the past 10 years. If the situation is not quickly addressed, the actual for Despite its high storing water under the worst-case scenario, which would surely trigger is only able to the of it as water resource, making it in the place under the Due to the (increase of live-water United Nations global ranking in demand from population growth and consumption per person terms of being with higher standards of living).. relates to food self-sufficient rate. In order to improve food , we need to think about a strategy that can

STATEMENTS / Issues / Identify Functions / Biomimicry Strategies / Design Aims

BROMELIA

GATHER WATER

RHEUM PALAESTINUM CHANNEL WATER MANGROVE ROOTS ABSORVE MOVEMENT

ZERO HUNGER

FOOD SECURIT Y FOOD SELF-SUFFICIENCY

LIMITED LAND EFFICIENT AGRICULTURE

WATER SHORTAGE

RESOURCE

SET TLEMENT

VALES

CONTROL FLOW DIRECTION

TREES

LEAD WATER AND NUTRIENTS

GET

GAS

DISTRIBUTE

LIQUIDS

CAMEL

STORE

ENERGY

PELICANS

EXPEL

SOILDS

MOVE AT TACH

PERMANENTLY TEMPORALLY

PARTHENOCISSUS TRICUSPIDATA ENGLISH IVY PARTHENOCISSUS TRICUSPIDATA

CONSERVE WATER WATER STORAGE

AT TACHMENT SYSTEM AT TACH PERMANENTLY WITH INCREASED AND GLUED SURFACE AT TACHMENT SYSTEM

COORDINATE RELATIONSHIP

COMMUNIT Y

FICUS BENJAMINA

SERVICE CORE

URBAN

ARCHITECTURE

WALL ELEMENT

WINDOW

ROOF BALCONY

VACHELLIA CORNIGERA PARTNERSHIP SURVIVAL

PROVIDE ECOSYSTEM SERVICE

PUBLIC GARDEN STREET Elevation TOP FLOOR LOBBY

COOPERATE

THREATS PROTECT

PREVENT STRUCTURAL FAILURE M A N A G E (STRUCTURAL) FORCE

WOODY PLANTS ENGLISH IVY PARTHENOCISSUS TRICUSPIDATA RAT TENS BUT TERFLY LARVAL

SECTRETIONS AFTER INJURY MINIMIZE EXPOSURE TO HARMFULL MICROBES EXTEND SURFACE ON THE WALL AT TACHMENT SYSTEM INCREASE STRUCTURAL FORCE LINK AND HOOK

DESIGN CONCEPT / Parthenocissus Tricuspidata /Boston Ivy

Characteristic: It is a deciduous woody vine growing to 30 m tall or more given su itable supp or t, by means of numerous small branched tendrils tipped with

First, the plant makes initial contact with the object it will climb. This then triggers the second phase, when the plant's roots change shape to fit the surface of the structure they will climb.

The roots alter their arrangement to . Small structures called root hairs grow out from the root, coming into contact with the climbing surface. The plant then excretes a glue to anchor it to the substrate. Finally, the tiny root hairs fit into tiny cavities within the climbing surface.

Pelecanus /Pelican

Bees movement inside behive

Characteristic: Honeycomb structures are natural or man-made structures that have the geometr y of a honeycomb to allow the the amount of used to reach and .

Characteristic: This simple yet unique mechanism can inspire innovation in the field of agriculture, specifically for the purposes of rain

The pelicans long, narrow upper jaw is mated by a lower jaw composed of the two long, flexible bones that supports the throat pouch. On spotting a fish, pelican thrusts it’s bill quickly into the water and , bowing the supporting bones outward to create a wide swoop.

In order to take advantage from this material optim ization, by lo oking carefully at how the bees use it and work on it, we realized that they use the in order to and not loose material on them. We also realised that even tho ugh not all the hexagons we see in a honeycomb are the same, they all have something in common :the unifying patter of the

opens horizontally and vertically

t h e r m o regulation and high elasticity

stores 3 gallons of water

DESIGN CONCEPT / Rheum palaestinum /Rheum palaestinum

Bromeliads /Bromelia

Characteristic: due to its , the pita fiber was formerly used by the people to make fishing nets, ropes, etc. Bromeliads are found in various tropical environments, like rain forests, dry savannas, and semi-arid regions.

Characteristic: Rheum palaestinum, the deser t rhub arb, is a plant indigenous to Israel and Jordan with a highly developed system for mainly along the using a 3D strategy.

The and

are organized alternatively which allows them where the The trichrome that is on the surface of the leaf and work by channeling the drops to the center of the plant and protect it from radiation.

The leaves of Rheum Palaestinum have a unique resembling ascaled-down mountainous area with well developed steep drainage system.

The major leaf veins on the upper surface are located in deep depression that are oriented towards it’s base, while The smooth upper leaf surface is , possibly enhancing plant's water harvesting efficiency

CENTRAL WATER CONNECTION

WATER SIDE COLLECTOR POOLING

DRAINAGE T O W A R D S STEM

DRAINAGE T O W A R D S MARGIN

Camelus /Camel

Characteristic: In order not to get dehydrated in warm environments, its using two mechanisms: during the night and by

Heat and water exchange take place primarily along the turbinate structures of the c amel´s nasal p assages.

Turbinates are spongy nasal bones, which are highly scrolled, providing and a for water and heat exchange. Normally, the surface of the turbinates is covered with , which help humidify dry desert air as the camel breathes in and remove water vapour as the calem breathes out.

CO2 ABSORBTION AND CROPS IMPLEMENTED

Algae, when used in conjunction with AI-powered bioreactors, is up to from the atmosphere. That means that while we are learning to reduce carbon emissions and augment our consumption patterns, we can start to make big reductions in atmospheric carbon. When wielded correctly, it without changing current production or consumption patterns of the city.

We decided to i in order to absorb the CO2 emitted by ourselves. This way we could make the indoor air cleaner from CO2 so our customers will also buy an anti-pollution device.

cause an estimated of the 3.1 million that occur each year as a result of undernutrition (Black et al. 2013; Black et al. 2008). adversely affect ch ild health and sur vival by weaken ing the immune system.

T he most c ommonly rec o gn ized m icronutrient defic ienc ies across all ages, in order of prevalenc e, are c aused by a (Table 3.1). Less c ommon, b ut sign ific ant from a p ublic health standpoint, is , with an estimated 190 million preschool c h il d re n a n d 1 9 m il l i o n p re g n a n t w o m e n a f f e c t e d ( W H O 2 0 0 9 ) .

D i et a r y d iv e r s if i c a t i o n e n s u re s a that c­ ontains a (carbohydrates, fats, and protein); essential micronutrients; and other food-based substances such as dietary fiber. Effective ways to promote dietar y diversity involve , such as and on better infant and young child feeding practices, food preparation, and storage/preservation metho ds to prevent nutrient loss.

Kale.

Brocoli.

Cooked kale is reacher in iron that beef.

Source of fibre and protein as well as vitamin A and C.

Beans(lentils) Source of V.B, magnesium, potassium and Zinc, 25% protein and Fiber.

Turnip Greens Vitmamin A: 45.43% Vitamin C: 36.67%

/ STUDY MODEL WeFlant: WE FLy plANTs Our design is a pot that collects water from rain and and by mixing it with it on top of it. The only requirement to make WeFlant work is to have a where it can be attached. It can be located in both, as air condensation is it´s main water source.

Taking into advantage that big cities go vertically as the transportation is more efficient, we wanted to profit from that situation and use it for our new design. Also, the increase of people in cities, has risen the issue of and We w a n t e d t o a n s w e r b y creating a that allows people to Attachment Pads Attaching one to another, creating a double attaching surface

, no matter the size of the house as the only requirement is to have free “3D space”.

/ STUDY MODEL WeFlant: WE FLy plANTs Rheum palaestinum

Bromeliads /Bromelia

Parthenocissus Tricuspidata

metallic mesh hydrophonic melamine foam, and hydrophobic fumed silica nanoparticle hydrophonic melamine foam sheet lightweight metallic structure

Camelus

Bees movement inside behive

Pelecanus /Pelican

polyurethane We tried to build a small scale proyotype in order to see mainly if the proportion of the attachment pads was enough for its size and weight with water. We discovered that it was enough and that the modules were easy to attach between them.. However, we were not able to try our prototype with the real materials as we just 3D printed it fron the 3D model.Moreover we places some plants on top to see the effect it would create.

DESIGN PROCESS: WeFlant is a single module that as it´s name indicates it is designed to work in collaboration with other modules. This way, we wanted to design a that could have

With we flant this goal is achieved in several ways. The principal will be providing the users with the among them with is air. Moreover, the stucture and geometry used aims to the amount used to reach and .

.

WeFlant, based on the sustainable energy, is designed to be humid such as Taiwan and Moreover, in a season where the climate is arid and humid it is still possible for the plants to survive in WEFLANT

is one of the biggest advantage of WeFlant.

Verical farming usually needs an external source of energy in order to suppy water. However with WeFlant we are storing rain water as well as collecting water from the atmosphere. This is a that continues

We F l a n t , b a s e d o n t h e biomimicry principles from thus by making a huge collaboration within the small structure and running One of the biggest advanatge of WEFL ANT is the system more efficiently by that, it where farmland are becoming scarce. such as walls.

CURRENT

1. One of the biggest constraint of vertical farm design is that it’s acceptance among people 2. Initial cost of installation is not attractive to the developers.

3. It leads to potential loss of traditional farming jobs. It displaces entire agricultural societies.

4. Only limited variety of plants or vegetables can be grown

As it is suspended we would need to test if the attachment pads that we added on our design could support the weight of the pots at their full capacity as well as their reaction in such as, earthquiakes pr typohoons. However if this is not possible we implemented in the edges of the structure that could allow the stucture

AND

We were not able to set a limit of modules that could be joined. We know that once they are being attached one another needs to be just to allow the excess of water to drain and also connect to the modules placed in lower levels.

However, the users would no the able to recolect the vegies of the modules that are suspended more than 1m away from thei facades.. We thougth about designing a for those users willing to have many modules.

Lorem ipsum

- Investors (Taiwans gobernment) - Online bank - Convenient stores

WeFlant: WE FLy plANTs

- Units design

- Innovative product

- Trust

- Product development

- Self-sufficient

- Satisfaction

- Sell

- Eco-friendly

- Eco-friendly awareness

- Material supplier

- Energy and money saving

- Rental company for the factory

- Land expansion

- Transport company

- Indoor and outdoor - Intellectual design (things that only me i can use) - Human resources (logo, creativity,...)

- Physical resources (3D printers,factory,...)

- Nature study resource

- Fixed cost: patent, employees salary, insurances, production machines, rent, office furniture, ...

- Variable cost: electricity, water, equipment maintenance, taxes, production material cost, transport,....

- Business to business (B2B) - Business to consumer (B2C) - Adults ( wiht habitation) from 25 to 99

- Social media (IG, Facebook, ...)

- Website - Advertisement (print and TV) - Specialized magazines

- Selling - Gobernment grant - Teaching skills - Additional products (seeds,....)

Migration is the demographic process that links rural to urban areas, generating or spurring the growth of cities. Growing cities are often seen as the agents of environmental degradation. WeFlant, can help to reduce the problems of land scarcity, water shortage and provide the aesthetic for the alleys. This makes the WEFLANT highly desirable today.

WeFlant, aims to solve the problem of limited agriculture land and the lack of affordable food quality in sustainable manner.

WeFlant enables every citizen to dwell in to the world of farming thus by helping each and every individual to empower themselves in food security.

In the case of quality our WEFLANT design materials are easily available in the market, also the materials that are used in our prototype design are highly durable and reliable. Over all WEFLANT is a product which is reliable, durable, sustainable, risk free and a problem solver to the process of urbanization. to 15 Stakeholders

1. Do you have space in your house dedicated for plants?

Yes No 1.2. If no, would you like to have it?

Yes No 1.3 If yes, how big is it?

-2m2 +2m2 2. Would you prefer to place it indoor or outdoor(in the facade)?

Indoor Outdoor 3. Would you prefer to plant vegies or decorative plants?

Vegies Decorative plants 4.Would you rather grow your own veggies (a) or get them in the supermarket (b)? (a)

(b) 5. Would you be interested in growing your our own plants without having to water them?

Yes No 6. Is it important for you that a product is eco-friendly?

Yes No

7.is it important for you that a product is recyclable?

Yes No 8. How many modules do you think you will need to buy in order to get enough veggies in your fridge? 1module aprox 1m2 1-4 +4 9. Would you like WeFlant to provide you with the seeds needed to grow specific plants?

Yes No 10.Would you be able to install it by yourself (a) or would you preffer someone installying it for you (b)? (a) (b) 11. Would you like to have a manteinance service?

Yes No 12.Would you buy it as a present for a friend?

Yes No

Indoor space with double height.

WeFlant decreasing sunlight heat.

Indoor view of different modules of We flant used as a security distance we flant to show how flexible it is installation measure as cleaning air. and how well it adapts.

Using Dali´s Painting "Muchacha en la ventana" to depict a daily scenario for WeFlant users.

For the development of the project several sessions of research and generations of ideas were necessary and they allowed us to arrive to our problem and to find a relevant solution. In addition to work done in class, it was necessary to meet outside the class in order to push and understand the complexity of the matter we are dealing with and to develop the research in depth in a coherent manner. Although in the beginning we had issues in defining the functions and how to make it relate to the biomimicry functions it became easier as we started doing out in depth research.

Having our problems defined and delimited, we proceeded to look for solutions that integrated the chosen organism.

Our group consist of 4 members and the work we have divided into three phases:: research, design and business model in order to solve the issues that we are trying address collectively. Additionally, during the process of prototype development we worked with a biologist as well as our advisor and reached in to our final prototype product.

Kuowei Eleazar-Godfrey Chiu

Kai-Jung Chi, Ph. D.

Jeff Taylor Carnell

Associate professor/

Associate professor, Physics and institute Architecture/ Environmental architecture/ Biomimicry urbanism/ Future city/ of Biophysics National-Chung Hsing

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