2. Designing architectural materials

2.1 Computer-aided design

In the field of computer-aided design (CAD), generative design approaches are the natural evolution of parametric design approaches. The latter, which exploit a geometric representation based on non-uniform generalized rational Bézier curves (NURBS), and a parameterization of the represented geometries, are today commonly used to design aeronautical structures or buildings.

Classically, it is the user, i.e. the designer, who arbitrarily modifies the values of these parameters. Generative design takes this individual arbitrariness out of the equation, replacing it with...