jagged polygon
A building plan with many corners and several perimeter indentations, arranged regularly or irregularly.
Pictured: Thanksgiving Tower
A jagged polygon is a form with many points or corners and indented at several points. It can have a regular or irregular shape. The indentations can be triangular or rectangular, and do not have to go all the way around the perimeter.
This form is used often in office building designs to maximize window area and to create additional corner offices. One of the most common variations is a rectangular plan with multiple notches in the corners.
The repeated points and recesses are part of the overall perimeter character. A few minor notches can remain details of a square or rectangle; jagged polygon describes a visibly serrated outline even when the indentations occupy only part of it.
Related definitions
-
arc
A building plan following a single open curve without reversing direction or closing into a loop. -
circle
A roughly circular building outline, including regular polygons with nine or more sides and minor perimeter details. -
cross
A building plan formed by two straight members intersecting within 22.5 degrees of a right angle. -
ellipse
An oval or nearly oval building plan, including a rectangle with two curved sides blending into a continuous outline. -
heptagon
A building plan with seven discernible principal sides meeting at convex angles, with unequal sides permitted. -
hexagon
A building plan with six roughly equal principal sides meeting at similar convex angles. -
irregular
A building plan whose overall outline cannot readily be assigned to another defined perimeter form. -
multi-winged
A building plan with at least two wings branching from a spine, excluding wings that all radiate from one point. -
octagon
A building plan with eight roughly equal sides, including sufficiently chamfered squares that appear octagonal. -
open angle
A building plan with two roughly linear segments meeting at one point, or a simple shape with a notch of at least 45 degrees. -
parallelogram
A floor plan with 4 sides in 2 parallel pairs which do not meet in right angles. -
pentagon
A building plan with five principal sides, allowing unequal lengths and minor notches or corner changes. -
radial-lobed
A floor plan in the shape of a flower or star, with radial wings arranged around a common center. -
rectangle
A floor plan with 4 sides meeting at right angles and one axis longer than the other. -
semicircle
A building plan with one main straight edge and one arc, occupying no more than 75% of the corresponding circle or oval. -
square
A four-sided building plan with right-angle corners and side lengths differing by no more than 5% of the shortest side. -
trapezoid
A four-sided building plan with nonparallel sides, distinguished here from square and rectangular plans. -
triangle
A building plan with three dominant straight sides, allowing unequal lengths and slightly rounded or chamfered corners. -
wave
A building plan following one curved path with at least two rounded bends in alternating directions. -
zig-zag
A floor plan with 3 or more sections connected in a line bending in alternating directions.