Kinetic Origami Sculpture: Herringbone Tessellation

Intricate designs create amazing experiences. Adding motion adds even more beauty to the experience. In UC Berkeley’s Prototyping and Fabrication course, the assignment for this project was to create an origami sculpture and devise a creative way to make it move.

Duration

September 2022 - October 2022

(Although this project had to be completed in a timeframe of 1 month, because I was added to the course late, I had to complete the entire project all in just during the weekend!)

Roles

Skills

Crafted an origami piece.
Placed the origami piece on the top of a box, and devised a way to move the piece with the use of a servo, feather board, battery pack, and strings.

Creative handrcrafting
Diligent planning
Clear vision
Skillful prototyping

Design Challenge

Combine your newfound Feather knowledge along with a servo and a handcrafted origami piece to create a one-of-a-kind moving sculpture. The goal is to have a moving art piece that draws attention and captivates the viewing audience.

Evolution of Design

Step 1: Handcrafting Origami Piece

The origami design that I chose was quite complex, so it took a lot of time, dedication, and concentration to create the piece.
I felt some frustration as I came across the more difficult and tedious steps, but replaying the steps on the tutorial helped me understand how to properly complete the folds.
Tutorial followed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nw5RLvN7fYA

Step 2: Creating a Model

Because the origami piece is quite fragile, an origami fan was used as a model to test how the servo worked based on the code.
The main goal for creating the piece’s movement was for it to open and close.
To do this, a string was attached to the middle of the fan, as well as the servo, and both were attached to the top of the box.

Step 3: Trial and Error

When the given code was uploaded and the battery was turned on, the servo’s movement caused the origami fan to slightly open and close.
However, the fan movement created by the servo from the current code was not enough.
As a result, different degree values and delay values were tested to create the most optimal folding motion.

Step 4: Key Observations

From the various trials that were done, it was observed that a greater degree value caused the origami piece to open and close to its maximum potential, compared to a lower degree value.
Additionally, a larger delay value created slower motion, whereas a smaller delay value created faster motion.

Step 5: Testing Actual Origami Piece

The observations that were found based on the model were then implemented on the actual origami piece.
The origami piece was attached to the top of the box and connected to a string, which was connected to the servo inside the box on the other end.
120 degrees was inputted as the degree value, and a delay time of 10 was inputted in the code.

Step 6: Encountering Surprises

When the code executed, the origami piece opened and closed as expected, but the motion was less graceful and smooth.
As a result, different degree and delay values were inputted for increased motion.
Even with the greatest degree value (180) and the lowest time value possible, the unfolding and folding motion was still not optimal.
The main issue with the motion was that only the middle portion of the origami piece was being expanded and reduced in size by the string that was attached to the piece’s middle.

Step 7: Addressing Surprises

To solve this issue, it was formulated that attaching two additional strings to the top and bottom of the origami piece would perhaps aid in its expansion and shrinkage during the process.
As anticipated, when the servo started, the origami piece opened and closed to its full potential.
A degree value of 140 and a delay time of 10 were finally decided as the ideal values for motion.

Arduino Code

Final Prototype

Because the origami had a complex design, I generated steady movement to create a sense of wonder and amazement for audience.
Neat and clean box for “museum experience”

Process Reflection

Surprises

I was surprised that the folding-and-unfolding movement of the origami piece was initially not the same as the fan’s movement when it was connected to the servo.

Obstacles

The most frustrating part of this process was determining the ideal degree and delay values of the servo to create an opening-and-closing motion for the origami piece.

Future Iterations

If I were to do this project again, I would find a way to create an opening-and-closing movement for the origami piece from both its right and left side. This would perhaps require two servos.