Geometries for Long-Span Structures

September 2010

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction.......................................................................................2
2. Features of the Geometrica System .......................................................2
3. Space Frames ...................................................................................3
4. Vaults ..............................................................................................5
5. Circular Domes .................................................................................7
6. Freedome® ....................................................................................11
7. Hyparwave™ .................................................................................13

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 1 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
1 Introduction
Space frame structures and domes are for a variety of venues that need large expanses of space. Arenas,
atria, museums, houses of worship, and industrial buildings such as bulk storage for cement, power and
mining industries need large covered areas without intermediate columns. In order to realize these large
structures in a cost-effective manner, expert design professionals shape these buildings to take advantage
of form as a structural element.

We'd like to take you on a "tour" of possibilities. The following pages describe the advantages of
geometry in realizing long span structures. We hope the information will help in your next project and
help you bring your designs to reality.

2 Features of the Geometrica System

Geometry and the building system used to
realize it are clearly interrelated. Unless the right
combination of structural system and overall
geometry are used, the resulting structures may
not be feasible. Solutions with joist, for example,
are limited to planar trusses in an array, and
work in one direction. Solutions with machined
joints, such as ball-joint systems, must minimize
the number of nodes as these are expensive, thus
some geometries become impractical.

Geometrica's building system is versatile. It

features an extruded, universal and strong joint,
human-scale modules, dense packing volume,
and easy installation with little equipment. These
virtues allow virtually unlimited form. Judicious
selection of form results in beautiful and
efficient long-span structures.

The hub consists is an extruded aluminum cylinder with threaded slots. The structural members are steel
or aluminum tubes formed at the ends into a matching linear shape that slides into the hub's slot. When all
the tubes in a certain hub have been assembled, the joint is completed with washers and a single bolt.
Once complete, the hub is stronger than the joined tubes, and, most importantly, the joined bars resist
bending moments in the direction perpendicular to the bar's axis and the joint itself. As we shall see, this
feature permits many variations on basic geometries that are simply not possible with other structural
systems.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 2 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
3 Space Frames
Many applications require roofs or covers that are flat, or nearly flat. Space frames provide efficient
solutions for these requirements, The most common space frame geometries are called "offset rectangular
grids", "square on square space frames", or simply "square grids".

But square grids are not ideal for long span structures for two reasons:

1. Loads must travel to the supports Square on Square Grid

indirectly. Because the bars in the top
and bottom chords of the frame are
arranged in a square pattern, the load
takes a stepped route to the supports,
much like a taxicab downtown trying
to go diagonally.
2. The depth is limited to less than the
width of the module. Because the
diagonal "web" bars connect
neighboring nodes in the opposite
layer, increasing the depth results in
impossibly large nodes and heavy
webs.
With the Geometrica system, it is possible to overcome each of these disadvantages and thus use square
grids for longer spans by modifying the conventional square grid as follows:

1. Increased chord density: In Increased Chord Density

order to build a square grid that
can transfer loads diagonally, we
can take advantage of the
Geometrica joint's capacity to
resist bending moments. Square
grids in each layer of chords can
be reinforced with diagonal
elements that are not directly
connected to the webs. This
stiffens the grid against twist,
increases the density of the
bending-resisting elements, and
allows for longer spans.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 3 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
 2. Varying depth: The top chord Varying Depth
of space frames may be sloped
to provide a deeper section at
the middle of the span as well
as positive drainage.

3. Double depth: The depth of the

frame may be increased by
adding another layer of webs
and chords. The additional
depth increases the second
moment of area of the space
frame, increasing the possible
span substantially. Chords in the middle of the double depth frame may be removed because the
Geometrica joint can resist bending. And because web members in the Geometrica system may be
very light and slender, the increased web count do not result in significant additional weight.

4. Camber: The "flat" space frame may be manufactured with a slight deformation in the direction
contrary to the expected deflection under service loads. This eliminates any possible unsightly sag
of the structure, particularly for the longer spans. Camber may be applied to either or both chord
layers of a space frame.

Any set of the above modifications may be combined into very stiff, strong and light space frames. For
example, the Swift Group's hangar at Skyharbor in Phoenix is designed to span 50m with dense top chord,
varying depth and camber.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 4 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
 Swift Hangar, Skyharbor Airport, Phoenix

Another space frame geometry commonly used is the triangular grid. Because of their triangular pattern,
these grids can resist in-plane twist. But as in square grids, their depth is limited and, for a large portion of
their extent, they often contain more web members than are necessary to carry the load. In order to
overcome these disadvantages, triangular grids may also benefit from the modifications available to
square grids. See section on domes below for some of the variations in triangular grids.

4 Vaults
Vaults are structures that span in one direction only, such as arches or longitudinal cylinders (barrel
vaults). Spans start at around 40m and can be over 100m. They are used for sports facilities,
transportation terminals, aircraft hangars and environmental protection.

Geometrica vaults are generally reinforced with ribs every few meters. Some architectural vaults are
continuous space frames developed to the desired geometry.

Vaults come in several cross-sectional forms:

1. Parabolic: These work best for the longest

spans with heavy gravity loads such as snow,
and moderate wind loads.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 5 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
 2. Circular: Ideal for high wind loads.

3. Acute: This geometry is designed to carry

concentrated loads such as walkways or tripper
cars and to shed snow.

4. Bent: This is selected when the footprint

space is very constrained.

5. Compound curve: Alternative to Bent

when space is constrained.

The ribs themselves have generally a triangular

cross-section, but for very long spans or for large bending moments, the ribs may have a double depth for
a rhombus cross-section. And, similar to flat space frames, the top chord may have an increased density
relative to the webs of the ribs. The end of a vault may be closed with a vertical wall or a semi-dome.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 6 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
 Vault with Internal Cladding

5 Circular Domes
There are three geometric parameters to define a circular dome:

A. Meridian,

B. Pattern, and

C. Layers

A. Meridian

Circular domes are surfaces of revolution. These surfaces are generated by rotating a meridian curve
about a vertical axis. The meridian curve may be shaped to "hug" any clearance line desired, whether for
storage or for architectural use. For example, in storage applications with automated stacker-reclaimer
equipment, the meridian may start nearly vertical, and then quickly turn into a more gentle slope.

Meridian curves are similar to the cross-sectional curves of vaults. For example, if there are large apex
forces, an acute geometry provides a positive slope near the apex to resist the load.

B. Pattern

Although square-grid and radial geometries (or combinations of these) are sometimes used in domes, the
in-surface geometry of the dome should really be fully triangulated in order to develop the full benefits of
shell-action. A dome with square patterns on the surface will generally result in a more costly solution.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 7 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
R. Buckminster Fuller's "geodesic dome" may be the most famous way to subdivide a sphere into nearly-
equal and nearly-equilateral triangles. Other in-surface geometries include Lamella, Kiewitt, Schwedler
and Geometrica's own Lacetm geometry.

Lacetm: This geometry is generated from a uniform

triangular grid trimmed to a dodecagon shape, then
stretched to form a circle, and finally wrapped onto the
surface of revolution. The resulting geometry is
structurally efficient. It also maintains nearly-equilateral
triangles and has a uniform base. Some of the largest
domes in the world, such as the 133m Ruwais dome in the
UAE, the 142m San Cristobal dome in Bolivia, and the
122m JEA domes in Florida are built with the Lacetm
geometry, or with a lamella-lace combination geometry.

Lamella: Lamella domes are generated with concentric

rings, where each subsequent ring is rotated by a half
module. This reduces the length of the ring tubes as the
geometry proceeds towards the apex. When the tubes of
the rings become too small (usually half the length of the
first), they "consolidate" to the next ring, joining the two
divisions into one. The separation between rings in
Lamella domes can be varied so they are equilateral
triangles forming each ring. Because the tubes of each
ring are equal, the manufacturing time is fast and
assembly is easy. Lamella domes are beautiful and a
favorite for architectural applications. Domes such as the
Cancun Hyatt and the Mustafa Centre use Lamella
geometry.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 8 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
Kiewitt: Kiewitt domes are also generated with concentric
rings. Generation starts from the base with a specific
number of divisions making the modules of a reasonable
length. Then subsequent rings reduce the number of
divisions by the number of segments in the dome.
Generally the number of segments is set between 5 and 8.
As with Lamella domes, the horizontal Kiewitt rings
provide an easy check during construction, but the pattern
results in many more different parts. Kiewitt domes
include the 110m Marchwood dome in the UK, shown
below.

Geodesic: A geodesic dome starts with a regular polyhedron

(generally an icosahedron), and subdivides each triangular
face to then project the new nodes onto the surface of the
sphere. As in the Lace geometry, the geodesic geometry has
nearly-equilateral triangles, but the base of the dome is
generally not uniform unless the dome is a hemisphere.
Also, the geodesic pattern is limited to spherical domes.

Schwedler: This geometry is generated by laying out

principal members along meridians and rings, and then
introducing diagonals to triangulate the rectangular modules.
It is easy to generate, but not very efficient. Diagonal
members are substantially longer than ring or meridian bars,
and must therefore be more robust to resist buckling loads. It
finds some application in glass-clad domes, as trapezoidal
glazing is less expensive than triangular. For other uses this
geometry will result in structures 20 to 30% heavier than the
alternatives geometries.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 9 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
C. Layers
Depending on the number of layers of chord elements, domes may be single-layer, Double-layer-
vierendeel, Double-layer-truss, or ribbed.

1. Single layer geometries are used for moderate

spans and for architectural applications.

2. Vierendeel geometries can be used for most

circular domes and freedomes. These are double-
layer frames with parallel nodes in each layer
connected with post members perpendicular to
the dome's surface. The second layer increases
the bending strength and the buckling resistance
without introducing unnecessary web elements.

3. Double layer truss geometries are used

whenever there are large or concentrated loads,
column supports, or for extremely long spans.

4. Ribbed geometries are also used in domes. They

are easy to install because most of the assembly
work may be done on the ground and lifted into
place.

110m Marchwood dome in England combines single layer, ribbed, vierendeel and double layer geometries

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 10 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
6 Freedome®
A Freedome® is Geometrica's trademark for free-style domes. These domes provide all the advantages of
circular domes, but with a non-circular plan. Using the inherent strength of doubly curved surfaces
Freedomes may clear spans up to 1000 ft (300m) and often are shaped to be the lightest structure to cover
a specific free-form area.

As circular domes, Freedomes may have lamella, kiewitt or lace in-surface pattern and single or double
structural layers. Where Freedomes differ from circular domes is in their overall shape. Four parameters
are required to define a Freedome®:
• Border of dome,
• Height at apex,
• One meridian and
• Angle in plan about which the selected meridian is taken.

Border and Angle

Meridian and Height

There is literally an infinite number of possible plans for a Freedome®. Some of the more common are
variations on the rectangle, but triangles, stars, ovals and other shapes are possible.

The meridian in the one direction you choose may be parabolic, elliptical, circular, or any other smooth
curve.

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 11 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
 Freedome® DSWMC Qatar

To adapt to the changing edge of the dome, the

meridian will vary as it is examined in other
directions. But drawings need show only one of the
sections in order to completely define the geometry.

Once the geometry and support conditions of your structure are defined, Geometrica engineers can
propose the most efficient patterns and layer options for your enclosure, or you may choose the pattern
yourself.

A Freedome® may be supported by concrete or steel columns, walls, edge beams, or slabs. The dome may
be reinforced with an integral tension ring to withstand its horizontal reaction due to gravity loads.

There are many variations on basic Freedome® shapes. Some interesting ones include:

1. Variations in spring line: the spring line of a Freedome® may vary in elevation when desired. This
may allow side support, corner support, or higher edges for special openings.

2. Setting the apex off-center: This may be useful when one side is not supported, for instance in an
amphitheater or an aviary.

3. Minimal surface: Another variation of an efficient Freedome® is a minimal surface; as the word
describes it, it is the least surface necessary to cover a particular boundary. It can be achieved by
varying the support heights, as illustrated in the figure. Other variations to a minimal surface can
be achieved by applying a load to “dome” it.

224m Nemak Freedomes

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 12 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
7 Hyparwave™
Hyparwavetm is Geometrica's trademark for hyperbolic paraboloids and other free-style surfaces of
negative gaussian curvature. Hyparwaves are usually single layer or vierendeel structures. They can be
assembled in interesting and efficient arrangements.

Hyparwavetm

Hyparwavetm Arrangement

Hyparwavetm Cantilever

Hyparwavettm - Freedome® Cantilever

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 13 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved
Currently Geometrica is building a free-style hyparwave to support the façade of the Soumaya Museum in
Mexico City. Designed by renowned Architect Fernando Romero, the Soumaya will soon be this city’s
newest and most visible world-class icon. (Render courtesy of Architect Romero’s Laboratory of
Architecture.)
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That's the tour. We hope you are excited about the possibilities!

Geometries for Long-Span Structures September 2010 Page 14 of 14

© Geometrica, Inc. All rights reserved