A Natural Way to Heat and Cool your Home
There are many ways to innovatively reduce our dependence on artificially heating and cooling in our homes. One such emerging design is ‘Breathing Skin’, created by Engineer Tobias Becker. Inspired by human skin, "Breathing Skin" adapts to the fluctuating external conditions of the building and controls the exchange to maintain a constant internal temperature.
The way that it works is by having the façade of the building covered by air channels or "pneumatic muscles", as described by the inventor, that work like the pores of human skin. The size of the apertures of these channels can increase or decrease, allowing them to adjust the amount of air, light and visibility passing through the façade. And all that is required is a low-energy compressor to control the air ducts, which are contained between two glass surfaces.
Figure: “pneumatic muscles” when they deflate
Figure: “pneumatic muscles” when they inflate
Another great feature of this design is that the occupant can manipulate the building façade in order to vary the indoor climate, according to their needs and preferences, which also changes it's appearance in the process. However, most importantly is that the design requires minimal energy to operate.
The ‘Breathing Skins’ project has incredible potential to assist with achieving thermal comfort in an eco-friendly way. It also paves the way for buildings that adapt on their own to environmental changes - buildings that are smart, interactive and also responsive.
Currently the first prototype, which was built in 2015, is only showcased in Madelbachtal, Germany. However, we would be excited to introduce this technology to Australian projects. So if you are interested in this call us today!
And always remember that you can acquire credit points for WELL and Green Star Ratings when using innovative design concepts and materials. Call us today to discuss.
References:
