Development of flexible and multifunctional furniture model with sustainable design strategies: adaptability for home office in compact housing

• Grant number: 21/02577-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): August 01, 2021
• Effective date (End): October 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Applied Social Sciences - Industrial Design - Product Design
• Principal Investigator: Tomas Queiroz Ferreira Barata
• Grantee: Henrique Mendes Rodrigues
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo (FAU). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 21/12943-3 - Application of sustainable guidelines and space saving design approaches in the development of furniture projects for home office in small spaces, BE.EP.IC

Abstract

The need to think about rationalized furniture is a contemporary demand since the process of strengthening telecommuting is accompanied by the current trend in the behavior of the real estate market for reduced-size residential launches, a scenario present in cities such as São Paulo. The present scientific initiation project proposes to study, design, and produce a model of furniture that is appropriate to the logic of the home office in compact spaces, with the objective of developing a flexible and multifunctional workstation thought from two extremes: the moment of the job, which requires the generosity of the visual task space, and the moment of leisure and rest, which seeks less interference from the work area in the domestic environment. Specifically, it seeks to investigate a model provided with mechanisms that allow the appropriation of the object by the user, in order to adapt to different circumstances of use, expanding when necessary or contracting and supporting other activities. The methodology, which is based on concepts of collapsible design, design strategies for sustainable furniture, and use of materials from renewable sources, aims to find solutions to the challenge using parametric modeling and physical models on a reduced scale through digital manufacturing with subtractive and additive technologies, organizing itself in: a) Identification and analysis of the problem; b) Research phase (data collection and analysis); c) Creative and preparation phase; d) Technical specification phase, modeling, and validation. Through this study, it is expected to contribute to the enlargement of practical and theoretical knowledge in the development of sustainable furniture as space optimizers and organizers. (AU)