Three-Dimensional Printable Origami Twisted Tower: Design, Fabrication, and Robot Embodiment

This letter presents a novel robotic mechanism inspired by origami and its fabrication method using three-dimensional (3D) printing. The selected twisted tower design shows unique structural and geometrical properties that enable bending and linear motions, and therefore, can be suitable for various robotic applications. However, fabrication of this origami design requires a complex sequence of paper folding and assembling by hand, which cannot be automated by existing manufacturing technologies. To fabricate this structure via 3D printing, the twisted tower is reconstructed in a computer aided design (CAD) model. The CAD model is then 3D printed using two different materials-a flexible material for creases and a rigid material for surfaces. The printed structure preserves the geometrical properties of the original tower. Associated kinematics and workspace analysis are also presented in this letter. The 3D printed tower is embodied into a robotic arm to physically demonstrate its potential utility.