OrigamiBot-I: A thread-actuated origami robot for manipulation and locomotion

Abstract

This paper presents OrigamiBot-I, a threadactuated origami robot, to demonstrate a physical application of an origami design for robotic manipulation and locomotion. The selected design can generate twisting and bending motions by pulling, pushing, or torsional force applied to the origami structure. Thread-based actuation also enables various shapes and motions by using different numbers of threads and routing them through different paths. The kinematics for each twisting and bending motions based on estimated parameters is derived. To evaluate potential use of origami for real-world applications and identify structural weaknesses, preliminary stiffness and durability testing was conducted. For physical demonstrations of robotic manipulation and locomotion, OrigamiBot-I was equipped with four independently-routed threads, where each thread is controlled by a geared DC motor. The robot successfully demonstrated its simple manipulation and locomotion capabilities.978-1-4799-6934-0/14/$31.00 ©2014 IEEE

Design and analysis of an origami-based three-finger manipulator

“…The size of the rectangular piece determines the diameter and height of each octagon layer, and therefore must be determined based on the desired size of the arm and workspace. 1 The twisted tower requires 24 origami segments for the first octagon layer and 16 segments for each additional layer. Any number of octagon layers can be added to form a tower with a desired height.…”

“…1 This machine has a maximum displacement of 4 inches, so a six-layer twisted tower with maximum 3-inch stroke was used for testing. A total of 1000 sinusoidal cycles were modeled with 1 Hz frequency and 1.5-inch amplitude (3-inch stroke).…”

“…After analysis of many origami designs, the twisted tower design by Mihoko Tachibana was selected. 1,2 This design was used to build a robotic arm with three fingers. The twisted tower is made of identical origami segments that are connected in an octagonal pattern and stacked to form a tower.…”

“…To estimate the stiffness and force capacity as well as dynamic characteristics such as fatigue over time, a twisted tower made of construction paper was tested by an Instron servo-hydraulic testing machine (model 8501). 1 This machine has a maximum displacement of 4 inches, so a six-layer twisted tower with maximum 3-inch stroke was used for testing. A total of 1000 sinusoidal cycles were modeled with 1 Hz frequency and 1.5-inch amplitude (3-inch stroke).…”

“…This particular origami design allows springlike behaviors, suitable for generating linear contraction and extension as well as bending motions. In our previous work presented at IROS 2014, 1 the twisted tower was used to build a crawling robot and a robotic arm to physically demonstrate its potential applications in functional robot units. Building on our prior work, a robotic arm with three fingers was built and tested for object manipulation (Fig.…”