Abstract

Traditional arts and crafts such as origami, kirigami, and basket weaving can be used to transform thin sheets into a variety of functional, reconfigurable, and mechanistically tunable three-dimensional structures. This talk will present my group’s work on the mechanics of art-inspired thin-sheet structures and how we apply the underlying principles to create functional engineering systems from millimeter to meter scales. With respect to origami, I highlight our work in analytical modeling, fabrication of functional miniature systems, and testing of large load-bearing origami structures. Next, I will discuss how weaving thin ribbons into three-dimensional basket shapes can create structures and metamaterials with high stiffness and a remarkable resilience to damage from crushing and buckling deformations. I will then show that introducing traditionally unwanted ‘snags’ in woven systems can be used to engineer the spatial curvature of the thin-sheet system. In closing, I will briefly discuss how, as part of my current sabbatical at Newcastle University, I am pivoting my research on thin-sheet mechanics into exploring mycelium biomaterials.