Session
2023 session 4
Location
Weber State University
Start Date
5-8-2023 11:00 AM
Description
Origami has become a popular method for beginning mechanical design due to its ability to stow compactly and deploy to a large area. One common origami pattern is the Flasher, which has a roughly circular shape and aspect ratio, centers around a polygon which can be grounded, and is easily extensible. Because of these advantages, the Flasher is a candidate for many deployable applications, including space-based optical telescopes, LiDaR telescopes, solar arrays, and reflectarray antennas. One of the primary difficulties when implementing the Flasher pattern is that it is not rigid-foldable and is subject to panel interference at high-degree vertices. This work builds on research done by Varela et. al. which created the Cross-Frame design to accommodate for panel interference. This work presents modifications to the Cross-Frame design which address the rigid-foldability issues within the Flasher pattern by optimizing panel frame structure with respect to the stiffness across each of the bisection axes. Three novel frame designs are presented which are called the modified cross-frame, the diamond, and the Z frame, respectively. Each frame design is evaluated for its specific benefits, and trade-offs for each design with regards to various optimization parameters are discussed. Methods for optimizing the Flasher pattern for stiffness using the diamond and the Z frame are discussed, and results are shown. Modifications of the optimization framework for future research are discussed.
Facilitation of Deployable Antennas Using a Panel Structure Optimization Framework
Weber State University
Origami has become a popular method for beginning mechanical design due to its ability to stow compactly and deploy to a large area. One common origami pattern is the Flasher, which has a roughly circular shape and aspect ratio, centers around a polygon which can be grounded, and is easily extensible. Because of these advantages, the Flasher is a candidate for many deployable applications, including space-based optical telescopes, LiDaR telescopes, solar arrays, and reflectarray antennas. One of the primary difficulties when implementing the Flasher pattern is that it is not rigid-foldable and is subject to panel interference at high-degree vertices. This work builds on research done by Varela et. al. which created the Cross-Frame design to accommodate for panel interference. This work presents modifications to the Cross-Frame design which address the rigid-foldability issues within the Flasher pattern by optimizing panel frame structure with respect to the stiffness across each of the bisection axes. Three novel frame designs are presented which are called the modified cross-frame, the diamond, and the Z frame, respectively. Each frame design is evaluated for its specific benefits, and trade-offs for each design with regards to various optimization parameters are discussed. Methods for optimizing the Flasher pattern for stiffness using the diamond and the Z frame are discussed, and results are shown. Modifications of the optimization framework for future research are discussed.