A typology of adaptive facades. An empirical study based on the morphology of glazed facades

A building's facade is its main interface with the external environment. Adaptive facade, one recent invention in the facade industry, has the capability to change its behaviour in real-time to respond to internal and/or external parameters, by means of materials, components, and systems. Among these, the adaptive shading and the facade glazing are two components that must fit together. This paper focuses on the spatial relationship between these components. It presents the results of the morphological analysis of facades with adaptive shading systems and the spatial relation between the adaptive shading system and the building's glass envelope. To characterise this relation, we formulated two measures: depth and distance. The results revealed four types of such relations: (i) the shading elements are located outside the building's glass envelope, (ii) they are covered by the glass envelope, (iii) they are located between the layers of the glazing facade, and (iv) they represent thin coatings that are flush with the surface of the glass. These results provide important insights into the emergence of new aesthetical trends in architecture, especially given the most recent technologies adopted in facades. In conclusion, we bring empirical evidence that the location of the shading system in relation to the glass envelope of a building is the key morphological feature that determines the extent of spatial transformation of the architectural structure on which such a system is installed.