Digital Technology In The Self-build Architecture System

Self-build is a primitive building practice of long-history. From animal architecture to Adam's House in Paradise, Human beings utilize basic living skills and common knowledge to improve their living environment. Such driving force of curiosity and self-improvement played important part in the development of human civilization. It is the leading power of architecture flourish, typology evolution and the progress of art. The self-driven force built the artificial environment in a democracy and public way.From the primitive hut to the modern metropolis, as a species human beings are losing the instinctive, barbaric, rustic and democratic self-sufficient ability. Our desire is controlled by privileged groups and supper economies. Small shareholders are following simple, monotonous economic interests. Our living spaces are decided by a few large consortia. Facing the high housing price, resource consumption, rapid urbanization and the Top-down privilege and heroism operation today, the article analyzed the potential and advantages of self-build method in modern environment. I classified the self-build method, finding that only the self-led build and participatory build method can inherit local culture and convention, promote the collective wisdom in a better way, and improve the self-sufficient capability of the inhabitant.The innovative feature of this article is that, it proposed a measure to remove the barriers in the public participation of self-build. Although a integrate digital method is used in the architecture produce process, but how to turn minority-controlled digital tools into a platform of self-build that benefit the majority public. In this objective, we need an integrated, unified, public accessible self-build chain and a relative platform, which is the core effort of the article. The author delivered an integrated framework of self-build. Combined with the fruit of advance-guard intelligent design, analyze and digital controlled fabrication, the article illustrated how to utilize the integrated digital chain to realize this framework.At last, the article introduced the author's self-build practice in Chunyu Wei's atelier, though which I analyzed the status and shortcomings of digital-driven self-build in China. And I made a further discussion of the difficulties and challenges of develop digital self-build method in china.