Free-form structures from topologically interlocking masonries

The paper presents new results about the geometry of topological interlocking masonries and some possibilities they present to build without formwork. Construction without the use of formwork may be an important issue concerning both productivity increase and decreasing of waste generated on a construction site. Due to the development of computational design and robotics in the construction industry, it makes sense to (re)explore innovative design and process of complex masonry structures. The design of this kind of masonry is standard for planar structures, and in this paper, a generalisation is proposed for the parametric design of curved structures. To achieve this, a criterion for translationally interlocked structure based on quadrilateral meshes is exhibited. The application of this criterion is then extended to masonry structures derived from other patterns. Physical prototypes of topological interlocking masonry are also presented. One of these designs seems to allow construction without formwork. •The context of the work concerns the development of robotics in construction.•The focus is set on complex masonry structures, and topological interlocking systems.•A new design criterion, for translational interlocked free-form structures is proposed.•This criterion is used to design masonry structures constructible without formwork.•Experimental prototype results are discussed.