Thick-panel origami-based parabolic cylindrical antenna

Abstract

This paper proposes a novel parabolic cylindrical antenna with great folding efficiency based on two symmetrically arranged Miura-ori thick-panel origami patterns and the removal of partial material from each panel. A design rule for the transition from the given parabolic equation to the geometric parameters of the thick-panel origami is defined. To ensure that the deployable structure has one degree of freedom (DOF), specific connectors between the two thick-panel origami patterns are designed from spherical 4R linkages and Bennett linkages, which are verified by kinematic analysis based on the assembly of linkages corresponding to the thick-panel origami pattern. Two joint-removing techniques based on the kinematic equivalence of linkages are constructed to obtain the continuous and smooth parabolic cylindrical surface and maintain the one-DOF property. The deployed/folded ratio influencing factors are fully studied, finding that a small panel thickness and a large origami pattern sector angle are necessary to obtain a high deployed/folded ratio. Finally, a prototype of the deployable structure is manufactured to verify and demonstrate its excellent performance.