Undamped Spring-Mass,

Tension-Compression System.

I had an interest in designing a tensegrity structure and, as with any of my design projects, the interest lies in uncovering the mysteries found in the connections. I used the icosahedron tensegrity configuration to explore a few concepts that intrigued me. I selected this configuration because all the nodes, compression tubes and tension rods are the same.

A defining consideration in designing the node was to conceal all the fasteners. This meant that this custom node would be a two piece assembly.  The compression tubes is loose-fit over the extruded cylinder on the node and the tension rods holds the whole thing together.

What would happen if I added compression springs on both ends of the tension rods. I added washers, compression springs and double nuts to the design of the node. The 3d model was exported from 3D Studio MAX as a STL file and manufactured using the Dimension 3D Printer.