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If you don't know much about geodesic domes or if you have never designed a dome before, don't worry! The Design Tutorial is your introduction to geodesic domes. It will teach you the basics of what geodsic domes are and how they should be designed. Yet even the advanced builder can learn important tips and tricks from the Design Tutorial. It is written by people who have built domes and faced the special problems which domes present when designing and constructing buildings.
The Design Tutorial covers the following topics: (Click on any topic to get a preview, or scroll down the page.)
In this section you will learn what a geodesic dome is and what makes it so strong. Learn why triangles are a better building element than squares, and what makes a sphere the ideal shape for a structure.
Dome
Design Philosophy (Top)There is a right way to design with domes and a wrong way to do it. The smart design works with the intrinsic strength of a dome and exploits that strength. In this section you will learn how to design smart, and avoid the common mistakes people make when they try to take design principles for rectilinear structures and apply them to domes.
Dome
Shape (Top)In this section you will learn the various tradeoffs involved in using the different shapes of domes which you can design with Dome Designer. Find out if a half-dome or a quarter dome would be better for your application, which one would be harder to build and why.
Dome
Geometry (Top)Geodesic domes are derived from regular geometric solids, generally either the octahedron or the icosahedron. Which geometry should you use when? There are a number of important tradeoffs which the designer should consider when choosing a geometry. This section of the Design Tutorial explains the differences between these major types of dome and discusses the tradeoffs between them, so you can make the right choice.
Dome
Radius and Floor Space (Top)How big does a dome have to be in order to provide so much useable floor space? Here we discuss the floor space considerations for domes. Although determining useable floor space is more complex than for rectilinear buildings because the walls of a dome are not perpendicular, the calculations are straightforward. This section also includes software calculators that allow you to plug in your floor space requirements and determine the required radius for each different shape of dome (half dome, quarter dome, etc.).
Breakdown
Frequency (Top)The breakdown frequency of a dome determines how smooth the dome will look, as well as how many parts it will contain. The beauty of Dome Designer is that it will let you visualize any proposed design and determine how many parts it will contain in seconds. In this section you will learn the tradeoffs between smoothness and complexity. Again, this section includes software calculators which will quickly give you an idea of how many parts a dome will contain.
Dome
Building Materials (Top)This section discusses the different types of construction which Dome Designer can generate plans for, including wood, plastic and metal tubing, and plates. Here you will learn the tradeoffs of the various construction types. The different construction methods supported by Dome Designer are valuable to the designer because of varying materials costs, strength requirements, and purposes for the dome being designed. Here you will learn how to match your requirements to the materials you will use.
Foundation
Design Essentials (Top)A geodesic dome will be no better than the foundation it is attached to, so you want to design a foundation strong enough for your purpose. Here you will learn the keys to designing a good foundation, whether you need something that can be set up in an afternoon and taken away next week, or whether you need something that will endure for centuries.