A geodesic frame connector system for a geodesic frame and method are provided comprising a first discontinuous ring having a first discontinuous ring upper and lower faces, the first ring upper face including an opening extending through the first discontinuous ring, and having inner and outer ring perimeters. A second discontinuous ring is provided having second discontinuous ring upper and lower faces, and inner and outer ring perimeters, and a fastener is provided having a cross section smaller than the opening. When one of the first discontinuous ring lower face and upper face is placed adjacent one of the second discontinuous ring lower face and upper face, insertion of the fastener in the opening of the first discontinuous ring causes the fastener to contact the second discontinuous ring, thereby forcing the second discontinuous ring away from the first discontinuous ring.

A system of cross-shaped units and nodes used to construct strong, lightweight, inexpensive space frames with alternately rigid and flexible components, in which each cross-shaped unit which fits together with five like units to form a spherical node which can be connected to other nodes to form frames for the production of structures including toys, playground structures, lattices, pergolas, statues, roofs, furniture, fixtures, mattresses, kites, lamps, artistic structures and fixtures, floating platforms, flexible joints for machines or robots, buildings, bridges and space stations.

A system of cross-shaped units and nodes used to construct strong, lightweight, inexpensive space frames with alternately rigid and flexible components, in which each cross-shaped unit which fits together with five like units to form a spherical node which can be connected to other nodes to form frames for the production of structures including toys, playground structures, lattices, pergolas, statues, roofs, furniture, fixtures, mattresses, kites, lamps, artistic structures and fixtures, floating platforms, flexible joints for machines or robots, buildings, bridges and space stations.

Tensegrity structures and methods of constructing tensegrity structures of three-dimensional tensegrity lattices formed from truncated octahedron elementary cells. Space-tiling translational symmetry is achieved by performing recursive reflection operations on the elementary cells. This topology exhibiting unprecedented static and dynamic mechanical properties.

A strut-and-node truss design that is applicable to all space frame structure designs can be made with using robotic (semi-autonomous and/or fully autonomous) or telerobotic assembly/joining. Nodes can include a 2-dimensional weld path in an effort to reduce the complexity of having to weld in 3-dimensions. Furthermore, each strut to node connection can be concentrated in a small area where each weld can be performed robotically from a fixed position that only requires the robotic weld head to swivel in a small operating window to reach each joint.

A system of cross-shaped units and nodes used to construct strong, lightweight, inexpensive space frames with alternately rigid and flexible components, in which each cross-shaped unit which fits together with five like units to form a spherical node which can be connected to other nodes to form frames for the production of structures including toys, playground structures, lattices, pergolas, statues, roofs, furniture, fixtures, mattresses, kites, lamps, artistic structures and fixtures, floating platforms, flexible joints for machines or robots, buildings, bridges and space stations.

A system of cross-shaped units and nodes used to construct strong, lightweight, inexpensive space frames with alternately rigid and flexible components, in which each cross-shaped unit which fits together with five like units to form a spherical node which can be connected to other nodes to form frames for the production of structures including toys, playground structures, lattices, pergolas, statues, roofs, furniture, fixtures, mattresses, kites, lamps, artistic structures and fixtures, floating platforms, flexible joints for machines or robots, buildings, bridges and space stations.

A system of cross-shaped units and nodes used to construct strong, lightweight, inexpensive space frames with alternately rigid and flexible components, in which each cross-shaped unit which fits together with five like units to form a spherical node which can be connected to other nodes to form frames for the production of structures including toys, playground structures, lattices, pergolas, statues, roofs, furniture, fixtures, mattresses, kites, lamps, artistic structures and fixtures, floating platforms, flexible joints for machines or robots, buildings, bridges and space stations.

Tensegrity structures and methods of constructing tensegrity structures of three-dimensional tensegrity lattices formed from truncated octahedron elementary cells. Space-tiling translational symmetry is achieved by performing recursive reflection operations on the elementary cells. This topology exhibiting unprecedented static and dynamic mechanical properties.

Systems, methods, and apparatuses for effectively increasing the structural capacity of space frames. In various embodiments, a space frame may be post-tensioned with interior cables that attach to nodes and form unique load transfer paths, thereby redistributing the member stresses and generally creating uniformity amongst stress types. Further, in various embodiments, variable space frame geometry may be employed to match the structural capacity of the space frame with the structural loads on the same, thereby modifying a space frame to comprise one or more empty bays or stretch bays.