Accommodating Panel Thickness of Origami-Flasher-Pattern-Based Deployable Arrays

The origami pattern called the Flasher can be used as a basis for creating satellite arrays that stow compactly for transport and unfold to achieve a large deployed-area-to-stowed-volume ratio in space. Although it is a complex pattern to make of thick material, three thickness accommodation techniques were applied successfully to the Flasher. The membrane technique combines rigid structural members with flexible membrane hinges. The tapered panel technique creates hard stops for rigidity and a single plane when the pattern is deployed. A technique introduced here, the cross-frame modification, uses discrete tapers made of planar-manufactured parts. These three methods make it possible to create Flasher-based systems for a variety of space applications.