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Origami Inspired Self-assembly of Patterned and Reconfigurable Particles
Published on: February 4, 2013
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Directing acoustic energy by flasher-based origami inspired arrays
Vivek Srinivas1, Ryan L Harne1
1Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA.
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
|December 2, 2020
Summary
Origami-inspired acoustic arrays, utilizing a flasher tessellation frame, demonstrate enhanced wave guiding. Spiral arm configurations achieve directive beams, while folding enables switching between directive and omnidirectional patterns for underwater applications.
Area of Science:
- Acoustics
- Wave Propagation
- Reconfigurable Structures
Background:
- Fixed acoustic arrays are limited in wave guiding capabilities.
- Origami-inspired structures offer potential for enhanced acoustic functionality through shape change.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore reconfigurable acoustic arrays using a deployable flasher tessellation frame.
- To investigate the acoustic beamforming capabilities of different transducer arrangements within the flasher array.
Main Methods:
- Utilized an experimentally validated model of the flasher acoustic array.
- Investigated transducer distributions along spiral and radial arms.
- Analyzed beam patterns and switching behavior through folding.
Main Results:
- Spiral arm transducer arrangements produced higher-order interference, resulting in broadside directive beams at lower frequencies compared to radial arms.
- The flasher arrays exhibited a switching behavior from directive to omnidirectional patterns based on transducer repositioning during folding.
Conclusions:
- Flasher acoustic arrays offer reconfigurable beamforming capabilities.
- Spiral arm configurations are effective for achieving directive beams at lower frequencies.
- The demonstrated switching behavior and directive capabilities motivate potential underwater acoustic applications.

