Hindwings of insects as concept generator for hingeless foldable shading systems

Hingeless shading systems inspired by nature are increasingly the focus of architectural research.
In contrast to traditional systems, these compliant mechanisms can reduce the amount of
maintenance-intensive parts and can easily be adapted to irregular, doubly curved, facade
geometries. Previous mechanisms rely merely on the reversible material deformation of composite
structures with almost homogeneous material properties. This leads to large actuation forces and an
inherent conflict between the requirements of movement and the capacity to carry external loads. To
enhance the performance of such systems, current research is directed at natural mechanisms with
concentrated compliance and distinct hinge zones with high load-bearing capacity. Here, we provide
insights into our biological findings and the development of a deployable structure inspired by the
Flexagon model of hindwings of insects in general and the hierarchical structure of the wing cuticle
of the shield bug (Grap...

Source: Bioinspiration and Biomimetics - December 22, 2017 Category: Science Authors: G Schieber, L Born, P Bergmann, A K örner, A Mader, S Saffarian, O Betz, M Milwich, G T Gresser and J Knippers Source Type: research