Within the context of the investigation into an agent-based methodology for the design and fabrication of segmented thin shells, the thesis involves the topics thin shell design, agent-based modelling and simulation, biomimetic design and robotic fabrication. The research is thus situated at the intersection of the fields of architectural design methodology, shell structures, complexity theory, biomimetics and robotics.

In the following chapters, the state-of-the-art in these fields is described, as it applies to the scope of the research.