Know when to fold them: the tech inspired by origami
#Origami technology #Kirigami engineering #3D printing innovation #Material reduction #Structural design #MIT research #Sustainable engineering #Foldable structures
📌 Key Takeaways
- MIT researchers developed kirigami-inspired 3D printing that transforms flat materials into 3D structures
- Origami techniques can add structural strength without adding bulk, reducing material costs and carbon emissions
- Several companies are commercializing origami-inspired technologies, including Stilfold's sheet metal creasing robot
- Potential applications range from medical devices to automotive parts and aerospace engineering
- Mathematical understanding of origami structures has advanced, making practical applications more feasible
📖 Full Retelling
Akib Zaman and his colleagues at Massachusetts Institute of Technology recently developed a revolutionary 3D printing technique inspired by Japanese kirigami that transforms flat materials into complex 3D structures when pulled, potentially reducing material usage and costs in engineering applications, with their findings published in December after months of research and testing. The technology involves 3D-printing material divided into square-shaped tiles that, when squeezed together by pulling an attached cord, pop up into desired shapes ranging from chairs to medical devices that can deliver drugs to specific sites in the body. The MIT researchers aren't alone in exploring the practical applications of origami and kirigami in engineering, as multiple start-up companies and university spin-outs seek to develop origami-inspired products that can strengthen structures without adding bulk. Mark Schenk, an expert at the University of Bristol, notes that while these techniques have influenced engineers for years, finding useful applications has been challenging due to complexity and scaling issues, though mathematical understanding of origami-like structures has advanced significantly in recent decades.
🏷️ Themes
Engineering innovation, Material science, Sustainable technology
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Structural engineering
Sub-discipline of civil engineering dealing with the creation of man made structures
Structural engineering is a sub-discipline of civil engineering in which structural engineers are trained to design the 'bones and joints' that create the form and shape of human-made structures. Structural engineers also must understand and calculate the stability, strength, rigidity and earthquake...
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Know when to fold them: the tech inspired by origami 1 hour ago Share Save Chris Baraniuk Technology Reporter Share Save Screams filled the laboratory – screams, thankfully, of joy. Akib Zaman, a PhD candidate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology had just made a mini chair appear, seemingly out of nowhere. He had pulled a thread attached to a flat, rectangular piece of waffle-like material segregated into dozens of wonky-looking square tiles. With that careful pull, the slab compressed together, suddenly stood up, and took on the shape of a tiny, curvy, modernist-style chair. After months of work, it was the first time he and one of his fellow researchers had seen their idea come to life. "That was a great moment," recalls Zaman. "We were both excited – we screamed." Zaman was inspired by the Japanese art form kirigami, like origami but instead of merely folding paper to achieve a 3D shape, kirigami also involves cutting. It's often used to make paper pop-ups. Both origami and kirigami have influenced engineers for many years. These techniques can enable materials to behave in surprising ways – but finding useful applications for them has long been a challenge. In Zaman's case, he and his colleagues found a way of 3D-printing material divided into chunky, square-shaped tiles. The angles of the sides of those tiles, and the precise nature of the cuts that separate them mean that, when squeezed together, they pop up into a desired 3D shape. It could be a chair, a tent-like structure, or a curved container of some kind, for instance. The team made a computer program that converts a 3D model into the flat, grid-like version, to which a pull-cord is attached. The work was described in a paper published in December . "You could make a larger structure like a building," says Zaman. At the other end of the scale, the technology could also be used to make tiny structures that, when activated, open up and deliver drugs to specific sites in the body. Zaman says he and his ...
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