🦢 What It Demonstrates
Rigid origami studies how flat sheets can be folded
along crease lines so that the flat panels between creases remain rigid
(do not bend). This simulation implements four classic patterns:
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Miura-ori — a tessellation of parallelograms that
folds flat into a compact shape with a single degree of freedom.
Invented by Koryo Miura for solar panel deployment in space.
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Yoshimura — a diamond pattern that appears naturally
when thin-walled cylinders buckle under axial compression.
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Kresling — a triangulated cylinder pattern that
collapses helically, used in deployable structures and soft robotics.
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Waterbomb base — a basic fold producing a 3D
inflatable shape from radial mountain/valley creases.
How to Use
- Select a Pattern from the dropdown.
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Use the Fold angle slider (0–100%) to animate the
fold from flat to fully collapsed.
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Adjust Grid size to change the number of
tiles/panels.
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Rotation slider rotates the 3D view for inspection.
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Crease lines highlights mountain (red) and valley
(blue) folds.
Did You Know?
Miura-ori was used on Japan's Space Flyer Unit (1995) to deploy a solar
array from a compact folded state. The James Webb Space Telescope's
sun-shield uses origami-inspired folding to pack a tennis-court-sized
sheet into a rocket fairing. Medical stents, foldable electronics and
even airbag packaging all use origami geometry. Robert Lang, a pioneer
of computational origami, uses tree-theory and circle packing to design
incredibly complex single-sheet figures.