Teaching Engineering for Architectural Projects: A Networked Multimedia Approach

摘要

Recent developments in software tools used for teaching architectural technology are discussed. We demonstrate a prototype interdisciplinary, networked multimedia package-an interactive analysis of Mies van der Rone's 1951 Farnsworth House-which we use to teach engineering undergraduates and graduate architecture students at Columbia University. The case study package is organized as a book-like set of multimedia materials, including: animated and textual overviews of the Famsworth House; a description of its architectural importance; in-depth structural and building envelope thermal analyses; 3-D detail models; facsimiles of construction documents; and published critical commentary. We have developed it for use on PCS via Microsoft Powerpoint, on Silicon Graphics Computers via Showcase, and on networked PC, Mac and Unix computers via World Wide Web browsers such as Netscape and Mosaic.The following features of the Famsworth package are demonstrated via Showcase and Netscape on a Pentium PC:1. The use of Powerpoint and WWW interfaces as "meta-front-ends," managing student access to particular technical tools, such as heat loss spreadsheets and finite element structural analyses.2. A detailed example showing how first-year engineering students use the Famsworth package to analyze the building envelope's thermal performance, and to design performance enhancements that are sympathetic to the architect's aesthetic intent.3. Summary examples showing how Famsworth's interdisciplinary information and analytical tools can be used to expose students to a variety of realistic design problems early in their technical education, and to help them understand interrelationships among various aspects of engineering and architectural design.