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Robots Built a House That Generates More Energy Than It Needs (dwell.com)

MikeChino writes: The world's first home designed, planned, and built with mainly digital processes just opened its doors in Switzerland. Developed by eight ETH Zurich professors, DFAB House is a pilot project showcasing futuristic building technologies that may someday work their way into our homes. It's topped with a solar array that generates, on average, 1.5 times more energy than the unit needs (an intelligent control system eliminates the risk of load peaks), [and there are waste heat recovery systems to recycle heat from shower trays back into the boiler.] Some of the pioneering ETH-developed construction processes include: "Mesh Mould technology, in which an autonomous 'In Situ Fabricator' robot builds a 3D mesh formwork for concrete load-bearing walls; Smart Slab, a lightweight concrete slab with 3D-printed sand formwork that's less than half the weight of a conventional concrete slab; Smart Dynamic Casting, an automatic robotic slip-forming process; and Spatial Timber Assemblies, a digital prefabrication process that uses a dual robot system to create timber frame modules," reports Dwell, adding that people "manually filled in formwork, bolted CNC-milled and 3D-printed pieces into place, and tweaked the digital design process."

3 of 45 comments (clear)

  1. Re:"Smart Slab" in action by Locke2005 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    That's China, where they _really_ cut corners! The Swiss don't cut corners! They just make things extremely expensive because they are designed to last for several generations.

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
  2. Re:Bitcoin by bobstreo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    So, could I use the excess energy the house generates to mine cryptocurrency so it will pay for itself?

    To be honest, I get the feeling it might be exhausting to live in a house that's working harder than I am.

    It would probably be more cost effective to create a grow room for umm "hydroponic vegetables" or something, depending on the local laws regarding growing things which can vary by county and state.

  3. Crap you can do that right now without the robots by Crashmarik · · Score: 1, Insightful

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/Roc...

    2KW Gas Generator from Walmart 370 bucks.