Interface & Cartridge Architecture

A Hybrid Cartridge performs significant functions across two or more Cartridge classes or interface domains within one coordinated assembly.

Examples include:

a structural End Cartridge containing strain sensors and digital identification;

a bathroom Cartridge combining structural mounting, potable water, wastewater, electricity, ventilation, sensing, and controls;

a façade Cartridge combining structural support, thermal insulation, weather sealing, solar generation, shading, and environmental sensing;

a Node Cartridge combining load transfer, power distribution, data routing, robotic alignment, and condition monitoring.

A multi-function product shall be classified as Hybrid when interaction among its functions materially affects design, safety, installation, operation, or replacement.

The Hybrid Cartridge shall define internal domain boundaries so that responsibility remains traceable. Combining functions in one enclosure shall not eliminate the need to verify each function independently.

The design shall evaluate cross-domain failure propagation, including:

water leakage into electrical systems;

structural deformation damaging fluid seals;

thermal exposure degrading sensors;

electromagnetic interference affecting controls;

software faults commanding mechanical release;

fire damage disabling isolation;

maintenance of one function compromising another.

Safety-critical and non-safety functions shall be separated physically, electrically, digitally, or procedurally as required by the applicable risk level.

The connection and commissioning sequence shall account for dependencies between domains. Structural retention may need verification before utility activation; grounding may need completion before power contacts engage; leak testing may need completion before enclosure closure.

The Hybrid Cartridge shall support selective isolation and diagnosis wherever possible. A failure in a secondary smart function should not require removal of a structurally critical Cartridge unless the architecture makes separation impractical and the lifecycle implications have been accepted.

Hybrid Cartridges offer the greatest opportunity for compact, intelligent, factory-integrated construction, but they also introduce the greatest risk of concealed dependency. Their approval shall therefore require coordinated multi-domain analysis, interface verification, failure analysis, and integrated testing.