quarter isogrid pattern
First, let's recognize that this is so simple, it's hardly worth describing. Take a look, and you get it. It is obvious.
That's enough. Use it.
But the human convention is to swaddle the precious but obvious with words - to tease out and enumerate every detail, to compose a narrative of creation and authorship, and, most importantly, to give a name upon which to hang all these conceptual baubles.
Call it the Quarter Isogrid.
It is not isogrid. Neither is it honeycomb. But as a structural pattern, it is expected to have properties similar to these other patterns. So "isogrid" is included in the name to suggest this kinship and imply that the pattern may be used in similar ways.
More people seem to be familiar with honeycomb than isogrid. Should we call the pattern a "triangle-supplemented honeycomb"? No - this is not honeycomb. It IS a subset of the triangles that make up the isogrid pattern, if you consider that pattern as rows of triangles. When you keep just one triangle out of every four in each row of the isogrid pattern what else do you have but a "quarter isogrid"?
Quarter Isogrid for Notched Rib Assemblies
Though we know the quarter isogrid is rad just by looking at it, let's revel in its radness a bit more by considering an application of this pattern where it out-performs it's closest rivals.
Consider the notched rib assembly. It is most familiar to us in a square or rectangle pattern, where ribs meet at 90 degree angles and fit together with notches.
Now consider what other patterns might work for a notched rib assembly. Honeycomb? Nope. There are no continuous straight lines through the honeycomb pattern to follow while taking cross sections of a 3D object. Conventional isogrid? Maybe. You can do it, but consider the notch situation. In the conventional isogrid, three ribs meet at each intersection, so more of each rib's height is cut away to accommodate the others.
Quarter Isogrid - Where Have You Been All My Life?
Why don't we see more of the quarter isogrid - or why don't we see it at all? Have you ever seen this pattern used for physical structures? I found a couple widespread examples: classic Vans tennis shoe soles and some weaving patterns. Neither is really what I had in mind as a good structural use, but that's all I could find.
Aerospace engineers tell me they haven't seen this pattern in use in their industry. A guy from NASA recently asked me where I got this design. Well, it's there to be had, if you need it. Same goes for the conventional isogrid. These are patterns the human mind is prone to develop when needed. I'm sure it's been devised and used many times, even if examples are not readily found. It's too simple to claim as an invention. It's no big deal.
Even naming it is a bit absurd - I consider the name I've given this pattern to be a useful shorthand, but to me it's a bit of a joke, recalling the absurd audacity of McDonnell Douglas Astronautics employees dubbing their "new" pattern of good old triangles "Isogrid". (They've got to be in on the joke too. You don't get a budget or NASA contract when you tell your bosses or sponsors you're working on "uh, this cool but utterly obvious triangle pattern thing".)
Discovery of the Quarter Isogrid
Following is a brief account of my technique for independently rediscovering the utility of basic geometric patterns. This new strategy for technological innovation is called "Loaf and Doodle". Loaf and Doodle enjoys tacit "best practice" status industry-wide.
I was trying to design a rib structure for a hollow surfboard. Conventional hollow wooden surfboards and paddleboards use a rib and stringer approach, with 90 degree intersections. I needed a ribbed core structure that could hold it's shape well before any kind of skin was applied. I knew it would be better to introduce some stabilizing triangles, or better yet, design the whole thing out of triangles.
I headed out to a favorite café (to loaf) with a dollar-fifty coffee budget and a sketchbook (to doodle).
What's a triangle but three lines? Well how about three sets of parallel lines? Let's scribble out some sets of parallel lines. Ooh, they probably shouldn't intersect more than two at a time, if I can help it. Let's sketch that again a little more carefully. Oh. (eureka, ah-ha, by golly, well I'll be..., holy moly, etc.) That will work.
I see here that if three sets of lines are all rotated 120 degrees from each other, and one set is shifted just so, I get all these triangles and hexagons - and obviously this pattern would be self-stable as a structure, amenable to the kind of notched rib assembly I was thinking of, and all these straight pattern lines can serve as paths for side-to-side or lengthwise cross sections of my 3D surfboard shape. Why didn't this occur to me sooner?
That's a verbose approximation of the process. Nothing special, right? It's silly to describe, but this is the answer to the "how did you come up with this pattern" question people often ask.
Conclusion
Did we tell the story?
There You Go
Quarter isogrid. Use it!
