Author(s)

G.E. FENCI & N.G.R. CURRIE

Abstract

The methodology for the analysis of deployable structures with 2 degrees of freedom (DoF) and optimisation of the deployment sequence is proposed. A parametrically controlled geometry, based on the design of biomimetic deployable structures, is systematically cycled through all available combinations of deployment and analysed for the full range of available motion established by the two DoFs. In other words, structural analysis is carried out for all potential configurations for the 2 DoFs, which act independently from one another. The results are, then, automatically post-processed to give contour plots showing the change in performance criteria such as the force or moment that develops in the struc- ture during deployment. Knowing that the structure needs to deploy from the fully folded to the fully unfolded state, the generation of convex hull profiles allows the selection of the optimum path to reach the fully deployed state based on whatever the governing criteria is deemed to be, such as maximum deployment force, deflection, weight of structure, or in service stresses.

Keywords

brute force, convex hull, deployable structures, deployment sequence, optimisation.