Rapid Assembly Of Continuous Surfaces By Adhesion Of Curved Crease Origami
Abstract
Assembly of hulls and other surfaces with curvature is often slow and inefficient because multiple flat sheets need to be connected by riveting/welding, or the fabrication requires a complex casting approach. In contrast, origami principles can allow for rapid and easy fabrication from flat sheets. Curved-crease origami allow for smooth surface topologies with the added benefit that thecurvature is controlled by the geometry of the crease and the amount of folding. Additional advantages of curved-creasing include reduced stress concentrations, improved resistance to buckling, and enhanced global stiffness. However, to achieve advanced surface geometries, such as non-zero Gaussian curvatures for ship hulls, it will be necessary to connect multiple curvedcreasesheets together. To that end, the objective of this project is to establish methods for geometric design, surface optimization, and physical fabrication of hull-type surfaces assembled by adhesion of curved-crease origami.Our work will establish methods for designing the flat origami crease patterns that when folded and subsequently assembled, will produce a desired three-dimensional hull-type surface. New analytical tools will give insight to the mechanical properties of the final system, and the process for folding and assembly of the separate sheets with adhesion. The curved crease geometries will be rendered to allow for computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of the hulls. We will create an iterative process through which the surface designs will be optimized to improve hydrodynamic characteristics including resistance and seakeeping. Our work will then explore the fabrication processes where we fold the curved-crease origami from flat sheets and adhere them to assemble a desired surface. A large-scale hull-type prototype will be created as a proof-of concept, and will be used for preliminary testing of stiffness and stability, and if time/resources permit for more advanced testing of hydrostatic and hydrodynamic properties.If successful, this research will enable a paradigm shift for the fabrication and assembly of complex surface geometries. The adhered curved-crease origami can enable rapid, cost effective, and on-demand fabrication when starting from simple flat sheets or rolls of material. The surfaces will have high stiffness and improved hydrodynamic performance allowing for the rapid creation of small hulls and other naval structures.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jan 06, 2021
- Source ID
- N000142112061
Entities
People
- Evgueni Filipov
Organizations
- Board of Regents of the University of Michigan
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy