July the 12th was a significant day for R. Buckminster Fuller. Read why at synchronofile.com.

New essay The Lost Inventions of Buckminster Fuller Part 3 of 3 now online for free.

"Inventions, the Patented Works of R. Buckminster Fuller" is a good introduction to Fuller’s many inventions. It is the basis for this overview of Fuller’s patented work. But "Inventions" does not include all of Fuller’s inventions, nor are all the inventions in "Inventions" by Fuller. Some inventions relevant to Fuller’s work are not included in "Inventions." Part three this three-part essay features the lost inventions of Buckminster Fuller, works that were not patented or which do not appear in "Inventions," and works that should have been in "Inventions" but were not.

Buckminster Fuller sought patents for his works to document in an enduring form what an individual could invent for the betterment of humanity. A primary resource for Fuller’s patents is the book Inventions, the Patented Works of R. Buckminster Fuller. Part two of this three-part essay features patents in Inventions that were not assigned to Fuller and patents not that were filed by Fuller. What did Fuller claim, and how do these claims compare to the public record? What did Fuller invent that has not been recognized by the general public?

Buckminster Fuller sought patents for his works to document in an enduring form what an individual could invent for the betterment of humanity. A primary resource for Fuller’s patents is the book Inventions, the Patented Works of R. Buckminster Fuller. Inventions serves as the framework for this three-part essay. Comparing the description of Fuller’s work found in that book with this essay will be most instructive.

Buckminster Fuller Bibliography by Trevor Blake and A Study of Shelter Logistics for Marine Corps Aviation by Col. Henry C. Lane now in print!

Buckminster Fuller Bibliography by Trevor Blake. Nearly one thousand printed works by and about R. Buckminster Fuller. Traces Fuller’s trajectory from outsider to globe-spanning public speaker to cultural icon. Includes information on Fuller found in no other book. 118 pages, 6" x 9", jacket-hardcover binding, cream interior paper (50# weight), black and white interior ink, white exterior paper (100# weight), full-color exterior ink.

A Study of Shelter Logistics for Marine Corps Aviation by Col. Henry C. Lane. In the 1950s the US Marine Corps put the geodesic domes of Buckminster Fuller to the test. They concluded domes were "the first major basic improvement in mobile military shelters for the past 2,600 years." Rare and fifty years out of print, now with a new introduction. 144 pages, 8.25" x 10.75", casewrap-hardcover binding, white interior paper (50# weight), black and white interior ink, white exterior paper (100# weight), full-color exterior ink.

I have invented the quickest, slickest way to make tensegrities. I call it the Klyp Styx system (pronounced “clip sticks”). It is an easy way to clip sticks together in an eloquent, flexible, multiple joint. You can see them in action at the unfinished web site klypstyx.com.

Klyp Styx is great for modeling polyhedra, floating compressions, Buckyballs, nanotubes, octet trusses and other space frames, and opens the doors to exploring other interesting structures (both rigid and dynamic). Curious? Let me know - eric@klypstyx.com.

Eric, the byg klyp styx kyd

There's a new ball for NYC's New Year!

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/nyregion/04ball.html

There may be a trend beginning in cities around the US and in Europe. People living on the fringes of traditional shelter as well as some governments are considering new ways to solve the problem of day to day existance for people who are virtually without resources, especially people without land. Here is an article that pretty well sums up the current models for this new kind of living situation. I am talking about portable villages.

I will archive recent developements in ultra-low-cost survival options in well-to-do areas here. This thread is about the coexistance of the rich and the poor. I encourage you to share your experiences and knowledge of shelter-for-everyone.

The model that works well right here at home may be close to the one that could work in disasters areas and for refugees around the globe.

http://gainesville.com/article/2007705280328

This is interesting, too.

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2000/wampler.html

By René K. Müller, Switzerland

http://housing.byrene.com/Polyhedra_Notes
http://housing.byrene.com/Geodesic_Polyhedra
http://housing.byrene.com/Geodesic_Dome_Notes

DOME is an open source utility for generating the coordinates of a geodesic dome or sphere develpoed by Rick Bono. Versions are available for 32-bit Windows platforms, Linux/Unix and MacOS. Full source code is available per the GNU General Public License.



Click here to find out more

Discover Magazine called Chuck Hoberman "the Buckminster Fuller of the 1990s." His unfolding spheres and domes bear a visual resemblance to Bucky's geodesic structures. Hoberman thinks the analogy is valid, but his work also differs from Fuller's.

The overarching theme of Bucky's work was "doing more with less." Hoberman says his point of departure is different: the idea of making structures that transform their size and shape. These may seem like different goals, but both approaches involve deep study of underlying principles. Things are designed not to look a certain way, but to act a certain way. The look of Fuller's geodesic domes, like Hoberman's Unfolding Structures, is a natural outcome of their governing principles.

When asked how else Fuller's work has influenced him, he says, "Well, I'm a fan." He adds, "After an extended dry spell, we are seeing a new interest in making innovative structures. If we develop our built environment with technologies that are both forward-thinking and beautiful, we help create hope for the future."


Click here to find out more about the Hoberman Sphere

John Kuhtik has been building domes with modular and repeatable fiberglass parts. His company, EMOD, hopes to "prototype the Fly's Eye shell, load it with essential equipment to make the dome a house, and make it available to the public at an affordable price. We would like to give families the option of having one parent at home again."

John is almost ready to put up the dome, but has a few more fiberglass panels to construct. His company is seeking funding and donations. The dome will constructed in Bayonne, NJ, sometime this year. The Fly's Eye was Fuller's last dome design, prototyped back in the mid-70s.

Some advantages of the Fly's Eye dome are:

• low cost, high strength
• light weight, easily transported components
• bolt together assembly
• lower heating and cooling costs than rectilinear buildings
• stronger and safer than conventional buildings
• savings on resources and labor: one third less material is used to enclose the same space with a dome than a cube

EMOD, Inc.
37 Parkview Terrace
Bayonne, NJ 07002-1708
(201) 823-0605

How can a dome be made using flat pieces of paper without the aide of any adhesive?



The answer I came up with is an origami geodesic dome. The first dome I designed was about 48" in diameter and displayed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in February. The event was written up and published in the most recent issue of Origami USA's official magazine, "The Paper".

Then, for this year's Origami USA convention at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, I designed an 8-foot diameter dome. I've looked far and wide and I believe it is the largest origami geodesic dome ever built, although origami structures based on the geodesic dome concept have been made before. Miyuki Kawamura, famous for her origami polyhedrons and author of the book 'Polyhedron Origami for Beginners' designed and exhibited a beautiful geodesic sphere that she calls the "cosmosphere" in 2004. Showing a beautifully gradated color scheme, it is roughly two feet in diameter. Also, in 2001, students at the Guadalaviar school of Valencia, Spain, built a paper geodesic dome using a design of Bela Garrido. Their larger 1.8-meter dome required tape. Bela's design is essentially a paper version of Buckminster Fuller's patented design.


OUSA Convention at the Fashion Institute of Technology in June 2005

The 8-foot convention dome was made from 201 sheets of square paper, folded into units that interconnect and lock without the aide of any form of adhesive. It took my partner Alessandra and I about 50 hours total to fold all the pieces, which we carried to New York City in four boxes and then assembled on site in about 5 hours. Gilad Aharoni's website referred to below contains pictures during assembly. When the apex was placed, there were five of us huddled comfortably inside the dome...there was plenty of headroom because the ceiling was about 7 feet high. We got out by crawling under the tables supporting the dome.

I also designed and exhibited an origami geodesic sphere at the convention. Alessandra's color scheme utilized lots of sparkly holographic origami paper to turn the sphere into a disco ball.


Also at the convention, I showed a modular origami disco ball made from all kinds of sparkly holographic paper.

I think the origami dome is a testament to Buckminster Fuller's vision because I think it is remarkable that a structure that large can be made out of paper without glue, tape, string, etc. It held firm without any sign of sagging. In fact, the disco ball can literally be held in the palm of one hand. The 48 dome shown at MIT could be flipped over without the slightest sign of distress. (In fact, paper seems to resist be stretched better than being compressed so it is probably happier upside-down!) At the convention, there was another big modular origami model...a level 3 Menger Sponger whose construction was organized by Jeannine Mosely. In a way, it was a perfect counterpoint to the dome. Whereas the dome is round, the Menger sponge is a cube (with holes). Whereas the dome had 201 pieces and was 8 feet in diameter, the Menger sponge had 66,048 pieces and was about 4.5 feet on a side. Whereas the dome took a total of about 60 hours to construct and build, the Menger sponge was made over a period of some 10 years. (The June 21, 2005 issue of the New York Times contained a photo of Jeannine with her Menger sponge.)

In addition, according to Jeannine, the Menger sponge cannot be enlarged to a level 4 sponge because it would collapse under its own weight.

On the other hand, I personally believe that the dome design can be made much, much larger. I hope someday to make a much larger origami geodesic dome...but this is just a dream right now because it would cost a bit and it would require more organization and time. I'd like to try to make one large enough that the dome itself can serve as an exhibition room containing origami exhibits within and so that people can comfortably walk inside and look at the exhibits and the dome from within.


The Science Club for Girls disco ball hanging at Boston's Children's Museum

After the Origami USA convention, I worked with the Boston Children's Museum and Science Club for Girls, a non-profit group created to foster an interest in science among school girls in junior high and high school. Working mostly with tenth graders, we built another origami disco ball bigger than the one shown at the convention. The ball was also used to introduce various topics in geometry. The girls did a fabulous job! None of them had prior origami experience and we started from zero. In about four weeks they had completed all 212 pieces and then built the disco ball on site at Boston's Children's Museum while teaching visitors some simple origami models. The disco ball has been hanging from a railing on the fourth floor of the children's museum since August 10 and still looks fine. The girls designed the color scheme and used shiny foil paper to give it a sparkle.


The origami diadem based on the same design principles...it is a layer from a geodesic dome.

Currently, I'm working on a small book that explains how to make the origami geodesic spheres and domes, as well as origami diadems based on the same design.

» Click here to visit the Science Club for Girls
» Click here to visit Gilad Aharoni's Origami USA 2005 photo album
» Click here to visit the Centro Virtual de Divulgacia de las Matematicas
» Click here to visit Boston's Children's Museum

Domes are nature's perfect structure and provide a unique and functional space for every use. These synergetic structures are perfect for a family dwelling, guesthouse, workshop, yoga or art studio as well as for events, trades shows, greenhouse and playground equipment. We combine the sacred geometry of R. Buckminster Fuller with our progressively designed covers to bring you this futuristic Zen structure. Our Domes illuminate with natural light creating an atmosphere of being close to nature in a comfortable environment.

Our domes are engineered with steel frames that withstand heavy snow and hurricane winds and are perfect for shelter systems. Available in many sizes, our weather tight, durable covers include windows, screens, and a wood stove set-up. Winterizing kits are available for colder climates. From Michigan winters to Arizona summers, people live comfortably in our Domes.

» Click here to find out more
» read 'Launching Spaceship Earth' an editorial about Bucky by Asha Deliverance, founder of Pacific Domes

Design office, New York City

Hoberman Associates, Inc. is the originator of transformation technology, and we lead this new field of making objects that change their size and shape. We create innovative products, structures, and environments. We have comprehensive design capabilities, integrating transformation technology into diverse applications such as medical, architectural, consumer products, and more.


Our inventive approach provides our clients with original and practical solutions to their needs. The results are demonstrable: over the years our product designs have sold many millions of units and our installations have been seen by many millions of viewers.

Hoberman Associates' work is centered on the fundamental idea that a designed object can transform the way a natural organism does. While the smooth transformation of size and shape is ubiquitous in the natural world, it is rare among man-made objects. The creation of transforming objects requires a new design theory, a conceptual framework that draws on mathematics, mechanics and structural engineering to integrate change as a basis for design.

Through years of exploration and experimentation we have identified critical parameters for the successful creation of transforming objects. The process of transformation should be:

• Complete & fully three-dimensional
• Smooth & continuous
• Reversible & repeatable

These attributes result in functional benefits for products, such as ease of use, fluid responsiveness and adaptability. They lead to an integrated design approach where structure and mechanism are combined, which offers the ability to build transforming structures at both large and small scale.



Over the years we have developed a number of systems for rapidly deployable shelters. Our designs for tents and temporary structures quickly and smoothly unfold from a compact state into large structural coverings.

» Click here to check out the Hoberman site