Programmable matter by folding

Abstract

Programmable matter is a material whose properties can be programmed to achieve specific shapes or stiffnesses upon command. This concept requires constituent elements to interact and rearrange intelligently in order to meet the goal. This paper considers achieving programmable sheets that can form themselves in different shapes autonomously by folding. Past approaches to creating transforming machines have been limited by the small feature sizes, the large number of components, and the associated complexity of communication among the units. We seek to mitigate these difficulties through the unique concept of self-folding origami with universal crease patterns. This approach exploits a single sheet composed of interconnected triangular sections. The sheet is able to fold into a set of predetermined shapes using embedded actuation. To implement this self-folding origami concept, we have developed a scalable end-to-end planning and fabrication process. Given a set of desired objects, the system computes an optimized design for a single sheet and multiple controllers to achieve each of the desired objects. The material, called programmable matter by folding, is an example of a system capable of achieving multiple shapes for multiple functions.reconfigurable robotics | self-assembly | multifunctional materials | computational origami E very day, scientists and engineers design new devices to solve a current problem. Each device has a unique function and thus has a unique form. The geometry of a cup is designed to hold liquid and is therefore different from that of a knife which is meant to cut. Even if both are made of the same material (e.g., metal, ceramic, or plastic), neither can perform both tasks. Is this redundancy in material, yet limitation in tasks entirely necessary? Is it possible to create a programmable material that can reshape for multiple tasks?Programmable matter is a material whose properties can be programmed to achieve specific shapes or stiffnesses upon command. In this paper we consider the theory and design of programmable matter material that can assume multiple desired shapes on demand.We have developed a unique concept of self-folding origami with universal crease patterns that decreases the complexity in individual elements and is scalable in the number and size of elements. Instead of relying on many individual subunits, which may be complex and difficult to orient correctly, we utilize a single sheet with repeated triangular tiles connected by flexible creases. This sheet can fold with a certain crease pattern to create multiple three-dimensional shapes, depending on which creases fold, in which direction, and in which order. We build on a large body of prior work in self-reconfiguring robotics to realize machines with changing shapes. Self-reconfiguring robots are modular systems whose bodies consist of multiple modules that can communicate and move relative to each other to form different shapes. These shapes support the different locomotive, manipulative, or sensing needs of the robo...

Self-shaping composites with programmable bioinspired microstructures

“…Likewise, photomechanical systems require specific light-sensitive liquid crystalline polymers [1][2][3] , and polyurethanes rely on the combination of hard and soft polymeric domains to change shape under external stimulus. Other shape-changing synthetic systems have been created, including, for example, sheets with origami-like folding properties produced either by lithographically depositing multiple layers of different materials [5][6][7] or by introducing electrically accessible actuators in specific regions of the sheet 8 . While the resulting heterogeneous structures lead to unique autonomous folding effects, the isotropic nature of the materials involved and the uniform thickness of the layers produced limit the shape changes to bending movements.…”

Reconfiguring smart structures using approximate heteroclinic connections

“…It will be shown that the system defined by Eqs. (13)(14)(15)(16)) has a number of equilibria which are both stable and unstable and may be connected through paths in the phase space of the problem. One type of path is the heteroclinic connection which requires the stable and unstable manifolds of two unstable equilibria to be connected.…”

“…Some applications of reconfiguring smart structures are also emerging to improve the aerodynamic and aeroelastic performance of aircraft [15]. Recently a new smart structure concept for self-folding origami has been presented, which can fold itself through embedded electronics into a desired shape [16]. A crawling robot that can fold itself was developed to demonstrate the application of this technique to the fabrication of reconfigurable machines [17].…”

A mechanically driven form of Kirigami as a route to 3D mesostructures in micro/nanomembranes

“…Of the many methods for fabricating such structures, few are compatible with the highest-performance classes of electronic materials, such as monocrystalline inorganic semiconductors, and only a subset of these can operate at high speeds, across length scales, from centimeters to nanometers. For example, although approaches (36)(37)(38)(39) that rely on self-actuating materials for programmable shape changes provide access to a wide range of 3D geometries, they apply only to certain types of materials [e.g., gels (36,37), liquid crystal elastomers (39), and shape memory alloys (38)], generally not directly relevant to high-quality electronics, optoelectronics, or photonics. Techniques that exploit bending/folding of thin plates via the action of residual stresses or capillary effects are, by contrast, naturally compatible with these modern planar technologies, but they are currently most well developed only for certain classes of hollow polyhedral or cylindrical geometries (1,10,(40)(41)(42)(43)(44).…”