Planar rectangular, slide-in reciprocal frame structures using salvaged timber and wooden nails

In this paper, we present a preliminary investigation of planar rectangular reciprocal frame (RF) structures considering structural, architectural, environmental, fabrication and assembly aspects. Following a timber-only concept and a low-tech design philosophy, we specifically propose to use salvaged timber and wooden nails only, as materials for fabricating and connecting RF structures, which is in line with an ongoing research project that has initially investigated the characteristics of salvage timber and the structural behavior of wooden nail connection. The present experimental investigation focuses on the single multi-layered element in a basic layout of a four-element planar rectangular RF unit. The single elements are fabricated out of small timber boards to create an opening that serves as a slide-in connection for the ease of assembly. We experimentally investigated the structural behavior of the single element in the proposed unit under bending loads. We also explored the assembly process and the resulting patterns by using the proposed approach to build RF structures. Moreover, to showcase the structural and architectural features of the proposed RF unit, a design case was physically realized.