# Geometric Mechanics of Curved Crease Origami

• Published in 2012
In the collections
Folding a sheet of paper along a curve can lead to structures seen in decorative art and utilitarian packing boxes. Here we present a theory for the simplest such structure: an annular circular strip that is folded along a central circular curve to form a three-dimensional buckled structure driven by geometrical frustration. We quantify this shape in terms of the radius of the circle, the dihedral angle of the fold and the mechanical properties of the sheet of paper and the fold itself. When the sheet is isometrically deformed everywhere except along the fold itself, stiff folds result in creases with constant curvature and oscillatory torsion. However, relatively softer folds inherit the broken symmetry of the buckled shape with oscillatory curvature and torsion. Our asymptotic analysis of the isometrically deformed state is corroborated by numerical simulations which allow us to generalize our analysis to study multiply folded structures.

### BibTeX entry

@article{GeometricMechanicsofCurvedCreaseOrigami,
title = {Geometric Mechanics of Curved Crease Origami},
abstract = {Folding a sheet of paper along a curve can lead to structures seen in
decorative art and utilitarian packing boxes. Here we present a theory for the
simplest such structure: an annular circular strip that is folded along a
central circular curve to form a three-dimensional buckled structure driven by
geometrical frustration. We quantify this shape in terms of the radius of the
circle, the dihedral angle of the fold and the mechanical properties of the
sheet of paper and the fold itself. When the sheet is isometrically deformed
everywhere except along the fold itself, stiff folds result in creases with
constant curvature and oscillatory torsion. However, relatively softer folds
inherit the broken symmetry of the buckled shape with oscillatory curvature and
torsion. Our asymptotic analysis of the isometrically deformed state is
corroborated by numerical simulations which allow us to generalize our analysis
to study multiply folded structures.},
url = {http://arxiv.org/abs/1206.0461v2 http://arxiv.org/pdf/1206.0461v2},
author = {Marcelo A. Dias and Levi H. Dudte and L. Mahadevan and Christian D. Santangelo},
comment = {},
urldate = {2016-10-14},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
eprint = {1206.0461},
primaryClass = {cond-mat.soft},
collections = {Art,Basically physics,Things to make and do},
year = 2012
}