fundamentals at wikipedia
Elements of Architecture will pay close attention to the fundamentals of our buildings, used by any architect, anywhere, anytime: the floor, the wall, the ceiling, the roof, the door, the window, the façade, the balcony, the corridor, the fireplace, the toilet, the stair, the escalator, the elevator, the ramp …
A floor is the walking surface of a room or vehicle. Floors vary from simple dirt in a cave to many-layered surfaces using modern technology. Floors may be stone, wood, bamboo, metal, or any other material that can support the expected load.
A wall is a structure that defines an area, carries a load, or provides shelter or security. Permanent, solid fences are walls, and border barriers between countries are sometimes walls.
A ceiling is an overhead interior surface that covers the upper limit of a room. It is not considered a structural element, but a finished surface concealing the underside of the floor or roof structure above.
A roof is part of a building envelope, both the covering on the uppermost part of a building or shelter which provides protection from animals and weather, notably rain, but also heat, wind and sunlight; and the framing or structure which supports the covering.
A door is a moving structure used to block off, and allow access to, an entrance to or within an enclosed space, such as a building or vehicle. Similar exterior structures are called gates. Doors normally consist of a panel that swings on hinges or that slides or spins inside of a space.
A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof or vehicle that allows the passage of light and, if not closed or sealed, air and sound. Modern windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent material. Windows are held in place by frames.
A facade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the [French language], literally meaning “[frontage]” or “[face]”.
A balcony is a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade, usually above the ground floor.
A hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age, a mead hall was such a simple building and was the residence of a lord and his retainers. Later, rooms were partitioned from it, so that today the hall of a house is the space inside the front door through which the rooms are reached. *disambiguation corridor
A fireplace is an architectural structure designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used at the present time mostly for the relaxing ambiance they create. Historically they were used for the practical purposes of heating, cooking, and heating water for laundry and domestic uses. A fire is contained in a firebox or firepit; a chimney or other flue allows exhaust to escape.
A toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human urine and feces. They are often found in a small room referred to as a toilet/ bathroom/ lavatory.
A stair is a construction designed to bridge a large vertical distance by dividing it into smaller vertical distances, called steps. Stairs may be straight, round, or may consist of two or more straight pieces connected at angles.
An escalator is a moving staircase – a conveyor transport device for carrying people between floors of a building. The device consists of a motor-driven chain of individual, linked steps that move up or down on tracks, allowing the step treads to remain horizontal.
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors (levels, decks) of a building, vessel, or other structure. Elevators are generally powered by electric motors that either drive traction cables or counterweight systems like a hoist, or pump hydraulic fluid to raise a cylindrical piston like a jack.
An inclined plane is a flat supporting surface tilted at an angle, with one end higher than the other, used as an aid for raising or lowering a load. The inclined plane is one of the six classical simple machines defined by Renaissance scientists. Inclined planes are widely used to move heavy loads over vertical obstacles; examples vary from a ramp used to load goods into a truck, to a person walking up a pedestrian ramp, to an automobile or railroad train climbing a grade. *disambiguation ramp
