Climate
Quantitative context through weather data, degree days, radiation, daylight, and energy demand.
Grasshopper tool / Climatic form-finding
OctoMass
An early-stage toolkit for reading building mass as a climatic decision before systems and specifications take over.
Question
Can environmental performance enter the first act of design — while form is still negotiable?
Response
OctoMass connects geometric descriptors, climate analysis, generative alternatives, and performance feedback inside an exploratory Grasshopper workflow.
Early-stage
before the form hardens
Geometry-aware
plan, section and mass metrics
Research-linked
methods become reusable components
Open-ended
evidence supports, not replaces, judgement
01
Form already carries consequences
Orientation, compactness, surface exposure, depth, and distribution shape demand long before HVAC efficiency is selected. OctoMass makes those relationships visible while alternatives are still cheap to change.
The tool grew from teaching and research on building alignment, environmental simulation, and computational climatic form-finding.
02
Working structure
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01
Describe
Extract reproducible geometric attributes from a massing option.
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02
Generate
Build controlled alternatives rather than isolated formal gestures.
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03
Evaluate
Connect climate and performance evidence to the design space.
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04
Learn
Compare patterns and translate repeated relationships into design knowledge.
03
Research layers
Programme
Explicit schedules and use patterns so geometric comparisons are not detached from occupation.
Geometry
Computable plan, sectional, and volumetric descriptors with consistent definitions.
Decision
Fast evidence for exploration, with full simulation reserved for questions that need it.
04
Not an automatic architect
Research status
OctoMass is an evolving research toolkit, not a finished universal optimizer. Its strongest contribution is the structure it creates between geometry and performance; broader rules still require consistent datasets across climates and programmes.
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Project credits
OctoMass grew from the collective work of Master’s Design Studio I in Sustainable Architecture at Iran University of Science and Technology. The studio projects became a shared testing ground for early climatic form-finding workflows.
Academic direction & development
- Dr Abbas Tarkashvand Studio and project lead
- Hossein Nazari Algorithm design, development and computational support
Student contributors
- Zeinab Ayini
- Mohammad Etesam
- Soroush Hassan Zadeh
- Mohammad Hossein Kariminejad
- Sara Khodaverdian
- Kimia Mousavian
- Mobina Mohseni
- Mahrooyan Nezam
- Niayesh Roostaei
- Amirhesam Biglarpour
- Mojtaba Mohammadkhani
- Zahra Ahmadi
- Fatemeh Azimi
- Mahdieh Moradi
- Alireza Orumiehei
- Sajjad Zamani
- Fatemeh IranKhah
- Alireza Ramyar
- Fatemeh Farahani
- Dorna Abdollahifard