Architects have always had to deal with the challenges of solar energy, whether providing protection from it, or leveraging it for energy and daylight.  Like many other challenges, we have a habit of throwing brute force technology at it to solve the problem at hand. Building technologies of the past were simple and utilitarian by necessity, and today, we are finally returning to the simplicity of the past with elegant, biomemetic solutions. 

Lake Flato recently established a research and development program with the goal of providing a framework to promote innovative thinking that supports our vision to be leaders in the integration of design and sustainability. This is the first in a series of posts documenting the initial round of research projects in the Fall of 2016. My challenge was this: to develop a system that rotates to face the sun throughout the day using nothing but solar heat energy from the sun itself, and no technical equipment.

Considerations included preventing unwanted heat gain, and maximizing usable daylight while maintaining views straight out of the window. And finally, it had to be made with affordable and easily available materials. If I couldn’t make it with cheap bulk materials from Home Depot, and put together in the Lake Flato Shop, then the technology isn’t simple and affordable enough to be ubiquitous and scalable.