Accommodating Thickness in Origami-based Deployable Arrays Shannon A. Zirbel Dept. of Mechanical Engineering Brigham Young University Provo, UT 84602 Robert J. Lang Lang Origami Alamo, CA 94507 www.langorigami.com Mark W. Thomson Deborah A. Sigel Phillip E. Walkemeyer Brian P. Trease Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA 91109 Spencer P. Magleby Larry L. Howell * Dept. of Mechanical Engineering Brigham Young University Provo, UT 84602 ABSTRACT The purpose of this work is to create deployment systems with a large ratio of stowed-to- deployed diameter. Deployment from a compact form to a final flat state can be achieved through origami-inspired folding of panels. There are many models capable of this motion when folded in a material with negligible thickness; however, when the application requires the folding of thick, rigid panels, attention must be paid to the effect of material thickness not only on the final folded state, but also during the folding motion (i.e., the panels must not be required to flex to attain * Corresponding author: lhowell@byu.edu