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Origami-Inspired Design for Manufacture of Composite Parts

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Abstract:

During dry fibre processing, manufacturing geometrically complex composite parts often produces wrinkles when fabrics deform beyond their shear limits. This work proposes a design-for-manufacture approach based on origami principles, which modifies component geometry so that deformation remains within allowable deformation limits. A baseline aircraft spar geometry is considered; an origami-inspired version, along with several intermediate designs between these two extremes, are generated. Preliminary forming trials with unidirectional non-crimp fabrics show that the origami-based geometry is inherently manufacturable without defects, and that a selected intermediate design also form successfully, confirming a larger manufacturable design space than classical origami permits. Results further show that wrinkle severity increases with increasing angular defect. This provides a foundation for linking geometric measures to draping mechanics to guide the design of wrinkle-free composite components without requiring computationally expensive simulations.

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Periodical:

Solid State Phenomena (Volume 391)

Pages:

107-114

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4028/p-7Bow8J

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Online since:

April 2026

Authors:

Sutharsanan Navaratnarajah*, Vincent K. Maes, Mark Schenk, James Kratz

Keywords:

Composite Structures, Forming, Non-Crimp Fabric, Origami

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Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

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* - Corresponding Author

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