Simplified space frame roof with the nearest unit polygon hightlighted in blue

A space frame is a truss-like, light weight rigid structure constructed from interlocking struts in a geometric pattern. Space frames usually utilize a multidirectional span, and are often used to accomplish long spans with few supports. Image File history File links SpaceFrame02. ... Image File history File links SpaceFrame02. ... Truss bridge for a single track railway, converted to pedestrian use and pipeline support. ... Geometry (Greek γεωμετρία; geo = earth, metria = measure) arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. ... For the martial arts related meaning of Pattern see Tae Kwon Do and Kata (Karate). ...

The simplest form is a horizontal slab of interlocking square pyramids built from aluminium or steel tubular struts. In many ways this looks like the horizontal jib of a tower crane repeated many times to make it wider. For other versions including architectural Pyramids, see Pyramid (disambiguation). ... General Name, Symbol, Number aluminium, Al, 13 Chemical series poor metals Group, Period, Block 13, 3, p Appearance silvery Atomic mass 26. ... The old steel cable of a colliery winding tower Steel is a metal alloy whose major component is iron, with carbon being the primary alloying material. ... TUBE (チューブ; chūbu) is a Japanese popular music group. ...

A stronger purer form is composed of interlocking tetrahedral pyramids in which all the struts have unit length. More technically this is referred to as an isotropic vector matrix or in a single unit width an octet truss. For academic journal, see Tetrahedron A tetrahedron (plural: tetrahedra) is a polyhedron composed of four triangular faces, three of which meet at each vertex. ... An octet is a group consisting of eight (8) elements, but it has several more specific meanings (usually given by a specific field or application): Music In music, an octet is a musical ensemble consisting of eight instruments or a musical composition written for it. ...

More complex variations change the lengths of the struts to curve the overall structure or may incorporate other geometrical shapes.

They derive their strength from the inherent rigidity of the triangular frame; flexing loads (bending moments) are transmitted as tension and compression loads along the length of each strut. Load is what is carried, or a force. ... In physics, the moment of force (often just moment, though there are other quantities of that name such as moment of inertia) is a quantity that represents the magnitude of force applied to a rotational system at a distance from the axis of rotation. ... Tension may mean: In physics, tension is a force on a body directed to produce strain (extension); it can be considered to be negative compression. ... There are several types of compression: physical compression data compression multimedia compression image compression executable compression audio compression video compression bandwidth compression audio level compression compression (functional analysis) See also Arch bridge Compression arch suspended-deck bridge Compressor Compression ratio This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that...

Space frames were independently developed by Buckminster Fuller in the 1950s and Alexander Graham Bell around 1900. Bell's interest was primarily in using them to make rigid frames for nautical and aeronautical engineering although few if any were realised. Buckminster Fuller's focus was architectural structures and has had more lasting influence. In the U.S. postage stamp commemorating Buckminster Fuller and his contributions to architecture and science, some of his inventions are visible. ... // Events and trends This map shows two essential global spheres during the Cold War in 1959. ... Alexander Graham Bell (March 3, 1847 – August 2, 1922) was a Scottish-American-Canadian scientist and inventor. ... 1900 (MCM) is a common year starting on Monday. ... In the field of building architecture, the skills demanded of an architect range from the more complex, such as for a hospital or a stadium, to something simpler, such as planning simple residential houses. ...

Looking up through the space frame structure which supports the Air Shard tower at the entrance to Daniel Libeskind's Imperial War Museum North.

Space frames are an increasingly common architectural technique especially for large roof spans in modernist commercial and industrial buildings. Download high resolution version (1024x768, 382 KB)Looking up into Space frame tower of the Air Shard entrance to the Imperial War Museum North designed by Daniel Libeskind. ... Download high resolution version (1024x768, 382 KB)Looking up into Space frame tower of the Air Shard entrance to the Imperial War Museum North designed by Daniel Libeskind. ... The aluminium clad east face of the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester. ... The main entrance of the Imperial War Museum North, with the air shard tower. ... Modernism as an artistic and cultural movement that generally includes progressive art and architecture, music and literature emerging in the decades before 1914, as artists rebelled against late 19th century academic and historicist traditions. ...

Notable examples of buildings based on space frames are:

• the airports of Foster Associates, for example Stansted Airport
• I. M. Pei's entrance Pyramide du Louvre.
• the roof of the Skydome by Rod Robbie and Michael Allan
• the roof of McCormick Place East in Chicago

The space frame roof at Stansted Airport

Larger portable stages and lighting gantries are also frequently built from space frames and octet trusses. 30 St Mary Axe, one of Londons most popular new buildings, towers above its neighbours. ... The Louvre Pyramid, Paris Ieoh Ming Pei (Chinese: 貝聿銘; Pinyin: ; b. ... I.M. Peis Louvre Pyramid: the entrance to the galleries lies below the glass pyramid The Louvre Museum (Musée du Louvre) in Paris, France, is one of the largest and most famous museums in the world. ... The Rogers Centre (until recently called SkyDome), which opened on June 1, 1989, is a huge ballpark in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated next to the CN Tower near the shores of Lake Ontario. ... McCormick Place is an enormous exposition complex located in Chicago, Illinois. ... Chicago (officially named the City of Chicago) is the third largest city in the United States (after New York City and Los Angeles), with an official population of 2,896,016, as of the 2000 census. ... Sir Norman Fosters terminal building at London Stansted Airport. ... Sir Norman Fosters terminal building at London Stansted Airport. ... Terminal building, designed by Sir Norman Foster Stansted Airport is a medium-sized passenger airport with a single runway, located in the English county of Essex about thirty miles north of London. ... A tower crane with a pivoted main boom Cranes on the Shenska River, Cherepovets, Russia A crane is a tower or derrick equipped with cables and pulleys that is used to lift and lower materials. ...

Tubular space frames are also widely used in the production of modern automobiles, but monocoque have been more common in the last 50 years. Car redirects here. ... Monocoque (French for single shell) or unibody is a construction technique that uses the external skin of an object to support some or most of the load on the structure. ...

See also

• Truss