A smart Australian computer program called Rocksolver has solved the 5,000 year old question of how to utilise unprocessed rock in building and construction.
Builders have known that unprocessed rock is a cheap, durable local resource for a long time, but have been stumped for thousands of years on how to convert it into a viable building material.
On the 6th of April, a new construction software named Rocksolver, designed by Malcolm Lambert, demonstrated its capabilities in solving the problem of building with irregularly shaped rocks. It did so by building a small wall in accordance with the computer-generated layout on ABC TV’s New Inventors program.
While Rocksolver did not take the top prize of the night, the judges gave due credit to the program for its ingenuity.
“Based on the fact that we’re really looking at saving massive amounts of raw materials and the capacity to really revolutionise how we build structural walls, I’m going to give it to the Rocksolver,” said eco designer Leyla Acaroglu.
Unprocessed rock costs 10% of the price and generates 10% of greenhouse gas emissions as compared to similar products, which makes it a very competitive and viable building resource in an increasingly environment-focused building culture.
Rocksolver is currently being developed by Mr Lambert’s research and development company Intresto Pty Ltd, which is based in Armidale, NSW. The program is presently in the stages of developmental testing, first for a two-dimensional application for paving scheduled to be released in late 2011, and then for a three-dimensional application for structures such as seawalls, retaining walls and houses in 2013.
“This is the first time Rocksolver has appeared on TV, so it’s a great way to introduce a highly innovative and green building technique to a public who are becoming increasingly concerned about their environmental impact,” said Mr Lambert.
