Millipede Volumetric Studies

Here are a few volumetric tests of the millipede house. I'm leaning towards the longer ones, though I'm not particularly fond of the proportions of the legs at the moment.



I'm attracted by the idea of a large man made object traversing the plain rather like a giant dino. Just wandering around grazing on what it finds. I think it makes sense on a more rural site to have the building re-orient it self depending on season or necessity. Perhaps the building becomes part of a farming process, rather than buying a new combine and taking it to and fro, you live in the combine and oversee the days operations from that center. The multiple legs keep the pressure per unit low, which would allow it to be relatively low impact on crops. It's possible that the entire unit could have a massive rain water collection reservoir and could selectively irrigate various areas based upon sensor input. No more need for an enlarged footprint on a site, the entire property can now be cultivated.
Just as nomadic tribes follow their respective animal groups, so too do the users of the house.
The millipede becomes part of the family unit, sharing a role in not only the safety (which is a traditional role of architecture) but also in the overall well-being and livelihood (see income) of the family. I posit that the users can develop meaningful relationships with the building given it's animate nature. If humans can project feelings upon other creatures and plants as well as various humanoid robots, why not a building, if that building a sufficient personality and the humans have a sufficient attachment to it. Do we not cry when our home burns? I'm not suggesting that the building be treated as a human but I suspect any animate form would gain a similar affection that we now reserve for our pets.



Obviously power is still a major issue, and due to the movement it means the millipede would need a lot of it and it would need to be produced on the house. Perhaps a combination of current site specific power options could be used, wind, solar, regenerative braking, etc. If only Tesla's light field were a reality.


There are plenty of precedents for large buildings moving about already, including the NASA crawler which is probably one of my favorite pieces of architecture.