Disembodied Tools for Restoration

Practices in the digitalization of building processes and the customization of production for conservation are examined to identify intersections between technology and preservation. Case study analysis narrows the research into operative tools and explores the use of robots for material reconstruction, the addition of elements after loss, damage, or disassembly, custom production, and digital data capture. Architectural restoration and robotic fabrication are examined through various lenses that highlight the ways they converge and the technical complexities still being defined. Cultural heritage case studies underscore the significance of restoration projects for historic buildings and the relationship between temporal layers of the built environment. A taxonomy compares interventions according to scale, design approach, materials employed, and technical complexities encountered. Case studies in robotics are further categorized into disembodied craft and computer vision. Large-scale experiments are described through a taxonomy including technology readiness level, outcome typology, tools used, and design processes adopted. The insertion of contemporary elements within historical contexts is analyzed through a framework structured around three modes of intervention: autonomy and dissonance, assimilation and consonance, and a dialectical relationship that seeks the reintegration of the architectural image. Identifying these complexities suggests speculative workflows for future applications.