Compliant curved-crease origami-inspired metamaterials with a programmable force-displacement response

• Published in: Materials & design 2021-09, Vol.207, p.109859, Article 109859
• Main Authors: Lee, Ting-Uei, Chen, Yan, Heitzmann, Michael T., Gattas, Joseph M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Compliant mechanism; Curved-crease origami; Elastic bending; Metamaterial
• ISSN: 0264-1275; 1873-4197
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matdes.2021.109859

[Display omitted] •A new type of compliant curved-crease origami-inspired metamaterial is proposed.•Adopting an elastica non-zero principal curvature enables a predictable and programmable force–displacement response.•Origami unit cell construction parameters can be used to generate a wide range of response shapes.•A new curved-crease bending translation (CCBT) method is proposed for analytical response prediction. Origami-inspired metamaterials utilise geometric sheet transformations to generate and control novel material mechanical properties. The majority of research effort has been devoted to straight-crease origami-inspired metamaterials, however curved-crease origami, which allows compliant folding and bending behaviours, has significant potential for adoption. This study proposes a new type of compliant curved-crease origami-inspired metamaterial, constructed with an ‘elastica’ non-zero principal surface curvature. Construction parameters for the new metamaterial are shown to influence a range of non-linear force–displacement response characteristics, including response shape, response duration, and response magnitude. A concise analytical curved-crease bending translation (CCBT) method is developed for rapid response prediction from metamaterial geometric parameters. The CCBT method also then enables the direct design and specification of a metamaterial with a fully programmable compliant force–displacement response.