Sustainable solution to chronic housing needs in the Canadian North

As Canada’s economy and population continue to rise, primarily due to substantial immigration, there is an urgent need for new infrastructure, in particular, in remote regions of Canada. This can be achieved through advanced technologies to improve productivity of the Canadian construction industry while reducing the environmental impact of construction. This project proposes the Self-Deployable and Reconfigurable Structures (SDRS) where a ready-to-install building unit capable of deploying itself without the need for on-site construction machinery or labour. The SDRS unit is folded efficiently for increased mobility in its original configuration, approximately the size of a truck, and then deployed on-site with the aid of a robot preinstalled on the unit. This project is the first phase of a larger research program for the development of the proposed technology where we aim to conceptualize an SDRS unit, develop engineering design and construction guidelines, create three-dimensional models and manufacture a prototype to study the validity and adequacy of the proposed technology.

Faculty Supervisor:

Ali Imanpour

Student:

Partner:

North Forge

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Education; Management of companies and enterprises; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of Alberta

Program: