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Origami structures hold promising potential in space applications, such as ultra-large-area solar arrays, deployable space stations, and extra-terrestrial modular foldable buildings. However, the development of thick-panel origami structures has been limited, relying on a few typical origami patterns without a comprehensive design theory for multi-crease, multi-vertex thick-panel configurations. Additionally, realizing closed Polyhedra in thick-panel origami presents substantial challenges. Here, we introduce a design methodology inspired by origami and kirigami principles for one-degree-of-freedom (one-DOF) flat-foldable thick-panel origami-kirigami structures, including modular scalable arrays and closed polyhedral structures. The thick-panel origami-kirigami modular scalable arrays incorporate mixed four-crease vertices and (2n + 4)-crease vertices, enabling one-DOF flat-foldability and modular expansion of thick-panel units. The thick-panel origami-kirigami closed polyhedral structures, including tetrahedrons, square pyramids and triangular prisms, possess one-DOF inward-flat-foldability and structural closure after unfolding. This novel design framework for thick-panel origami-kirigami structures is capable of structural design from centimeter to meter scale, validated by kinematic analysis and prototype experiments.
Chong Zhao and colleagues present a novel design methodology for thick-panel origami-kirigami structures, enabling modular scalable arrays and closed polyhedral structures. This approach combines origami and kirigami principles to facilitate structural design across varying scales, supported by kinematic analysis and prototype validation.