Clark Roubicek 1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 e-mail: c.roubicek@byu.edu Guangjun Gao NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd., Greenbelt, MD 20771 e-mail: guangjun.gao@nasa.gov Hui Li NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd., Greenbelt, MD 20771 e-mail: hui.li-1@nasa.gov Mark Stephen NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd., Greenbelt, MD 20771 e-mail: mark.a.stephen@nasa.gov Spencer P. Magleby Department of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 e-mail: magleby@byu.edu Larry L. Howell Department of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602 e-mail: lhowell@byu.edu Effects of Panel Misalignment in a Deployable Origami-Based Optical Array Deployable origami-based arrays can offer many benefits for a wide variety of engineering applications. However, alignment in the deployed state is a primary challenge of these arrays; in optical systems, local (single panel) and global (entire array) misalignment can drastically reduce performance. The objective of this work is to compare the relative sensitivities of different degrees-of-freedom (DOFs) of misalignment in deployable origami-based optical arrays and specify which have the greatest effect on performance. To accomplish this, we suggest a practice for defining local and global misalignment in deployable origami-based arrays, we simulate misalignment perturbations and record the resulting power output, and we use compensation techniques to restore as much lost power as possible. We use a deployable LiDAR telescope based on the hexagonal twist origami pattern as a case study, though the conclusions could be extended to other origami-based systems. From simulation, we find that the DOFs which are the most sensi- tive to misalignment and for which compensation is not effective are the local decenter X (467% power loss per mm misalignment), local decenter Y (463% power loss per mm mis- alignment), local tilt (357% power loss per degree misalignment), and local tip (265% power loss per degree misalignment) misalignments. These results could help minimize the need for compensation or position sensing and help optical systems designers to know which DOFs should be carefully controlled to maximize energy output. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4056475] Keywords: aerospace applications, compliant mechanisms, deployable origami, optics 1 Introduction Deployable origami-based array systems have received increased interest over the past several years, particularly in circumstances where an array must stow compactly and deploy to a large area [1,2]. Suggested areas of application for origami-based systems include solar array concentrators [3], radiative surface heat control [4], origami arrays as actuators [5], energy absorption [6,7], antennas [8,9], automobile airbags [10], biomedical devices [11], and consumer products [12]. They have also been proposed for use as LiDAR telescopes [13]. LiDAR telescopes and other optical arrays need precise place- ment to function correctly [14]; to achieve such precision, designers have traditionally used segmented mirror arrays. Wang et al. have analyzed the effect of panel misalignment in three degrees- of-freedom (DOFs) on radiation patterns in segmented mirror anten- nas to develop a tolerance budget [15]. Segmented mirror arrays, however, are heavy, bulky, and require a large number of actuators, which can result in high costs required to place them in orbit [16]. Selecting a telescope design based on a deployable origami array instead of a segmented mirror array could offer many benefits, such as shrinking rocket fairing sizes, increasing aperture sizes, decreasing the number of actuators, and decreasing the cost of launches, which could help to increase the frequency of optical tele- scope missions [16,17]. Such an increase could lead to higher- resolution images and more space exploration. However, many challenges exist when attempting to use deployable origami patterns as telescopes [18,19]. One challenge, termed deployment, is to align each panel relative to the array’s coordinate frame; another chal- lenge, termed positioning, is to align the entire array relative to the detector. In certain applications, the misalignment of panels or of the array can severely lower performance [20]; specifically, misalignment can contribute to the difficulty or inability to completely deploy, increased stresses at joint lines, degraded image quality, loss of power and efficiency of the array, and even complete mission failure [21]. Panel misalignment may come about because of machining tolerances, inaccurate assembly, obstructions during deployment, and external factors such as temperature, gravity, or stresses and vibrations experienced during launch [14,22,23]. Array misalignment can be introduced through the same means as well as from the malfunction of positioning mechanisms. Because of the significant effects of misalignment, it is important to charac- terize and understand it so that it can be mitigated [23]. The objective of this work is to propose a system for characteriz- ing misalignment in deployable origami arrays, analyze the effects of misalignment on performance of a LiDAR telescope, and deter- mine which DOFs are more sensitive to misalignment. This work presents a case study of misalignment in the hexagonal twist origami pattern and its use as a LiDAR telescope, but the results and conclusions can be extended to a variety of systems and appli- cations. The results of this work will provide an approach for 1 Corresponding author. Manuscript received September 19, 2022; final manuscript received November 29, 2022; published online January 5, 2023. Assoc. Editor: Shaoxing Qu. This work is in part a work of the U.S. Government. ASME disclaims all interest in the U.S. Government’s contributions. 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