project dom indoors coordinates tiny robots to assemble rooms in minutes

project dom indoors coordinates tiny robots to assemble rooms in minutes
all images courtesy of asmbld

‘project dom indoors’ is the latest research by asmbld, a NYC-based construction robotics company. it’s a robotic system that can reconfigure any room in minutes with the addition of tiny robots that assemble walls, furniture and custom objects from modular elements. the platform can be integrated into almost any existing open space and at rest, it looks like a typical service floor. users can dynamically reshape the space around them. the system can be useful for micro-apartments or could help businesses rapidly adapt to changing needs. for example, increase the number of meeting rooms and private offices by building them on demand, or completely reconfigure spaces to house new events in hours.the floor platform 

robots are needed because small modules make manual assembly prohibitively time-consuming and expensive. they operate in the void under the floor and can orient themselves using light sensors and markers on the surface. the robots can bring and place modular frame elements and surface tiles to any desired position under the floor, where structures are assembled layer by layer. the robots create each layer outline using identical modular elements. after a layer outline is assembled under the floor, lifting robots take over. they push the layer up and hold it until other robots secure new supports underneath it. the process is repeated until the structure is assembled – or reversed to disassemble an existing object. the concept treats the modular tiles as pixels and can be of different materials and textures: wood, metal, plastic, even ceramic. users can design almost any 3D shape in this environment, similar the popular game minecraft. 

video courtesy of asmbld

the project can be programmed from a smartphone

the sensory robot

the lifting robot

video courtesy of asmbld

robots would structure blocks