Abstract
Biological structures show a great variety of deployment mechanisms for: (i) unfolding from buds, as in petals or in leaves, e.g. beech and hornbeam; (ii) growth in complex 3-dimensional patterns as can be seen in buds of thistles or in fructifications such as pine cones; (iii) appendages for locomotion (swimming, walking, jumping, running or flying, as exemplified in fins, legs and the wings of birds, bats or insects such as beetles (Coleoptera); (iv) feeding or defence, exemplified by the uncoiling proboscis or feeding tube of butterflies and moths, ant the stinging tubule of the specialized capsule in jellyfish and other members of the phylum Cnidaria which uncoils and everts in a fraction of a second.
From a technical point of view these natural deployment patterns show elastic elements and great freedom in their kinematics. At the same time, however, the movements seem to be so well controlled that safe, non-jamming deployment and, in many cases, reversed collapsing as well, are readily performed. For this reason, research on these mechanisms could inspire new concepts for technical structures and help solve the problems of deformations due to the mass of the deployment device which can cause significant friction in the articulations resulting in a high risk of jamming.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Brackenbury J.H. (1994). Wing folding and free-flight kinematics in coleoptera (Insecta): a comparative study. J. Zool. London, 232, 253–283.
Forbes, W.T.M. (1926). The wing folding patterns of the Coleoptera. J. New York Ent. soc. 34, 42–139.
Guest S.D. & Pellegrino S. (1992). Inextensional wrapping of flat membranes. Proc. 1st Int. Sem. Struct. Morphol. (Motro & Wester, eds.), Montpellier, 203–215). [Repliement sans déformations de membranes plates].
Haas F. & Wootton R.J. (1996). Two basic mechanisms in insect wing folding. Proc. R.Soc. Lond. B. 1651–1658.
Haas F. (1997). Wing folding in the Coleoptera. Proc. 1. Int. Conf. on Motion systems (Blickhan et al. eds), Jena, 29–30 Sept. 1997, Biona 13, 49–50.
Holstein Th. & Tardent P. (1984). An ultrahigh-speed analysis of exocytosis: Nematocyst discharge. Science, N.Y. 223, 830–833.
Kobayashi H., Kresling B. & Vincent J.F.V. (1998). The geometry of unfolding treee leaves. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 265, 147–154.
Kresling B. (1992). Folded structures in nature — lessons in design. Proc. 2nd Int. Symp. SFB230, Part 2, Stuttgart, Oct. 1–41991, 155–161.
Kresling B. (1994). Hommage à Miura. Symmetry: Culture and Science, Quat. Int. Soc. Study of Symmetry, Budapest, 5, 1, 23–36.
Kresling B. (1996). Plant ‘Design’: Mechanical simulations of growth patterns and bionics. Biomimetics, 3, 3, 105–122.
Kresling B. (1997a). Exploring bistable and elastic properties of folding patterns in insect wings. I. Int. Conf. on Motion systems (Blickhan et al. eds), Jena, 29–30 Sept. 1997, G. Fischer, Stuttgart, Biona 13, 51–52.
Kresling B. (1997b). Folded and unfolded nature. Proc. 2nd Int. Meet. Origami Sc. & Scient. Origami, Seian University of Art and Design, Ootsu (Miura et al. eds.). 93–108.
Kresling B. (1997c). Self-deployable tubular systems in nature and engineering. Proc. Structural Morphology, tozards the New Millennium, Nottingham, UK, Aug. 15–17, 1997 (Chilton et al eds.), 188–195.
Kresling B. (1997d). Exploring bistable and elastic properties of folding patterns in insect wings. 1. Int. Conf. on Motion systems (Blickhan et al. eds), Jena, 29–30 Sept. 1997, Biona 13, 51–52.
Kresling B. (1997e). The nematocyst tubule–A 3-dimensional folding conundrum.. 1. Int. Conf. on Motion systems. (Blickhan et al. eds), Jena, 29–30 Sept. 1997, G. Fischer, Stuttgart, Biona 13, 246–247.
Kresling B. & Vincent. JFV. (1997). The mechanics of unfolding tree leaves. Proc. Plant Biomechanics. Reading, 369–376.
Kresling B. (1998). Bistability as a necessary condition for the the deployment and stabilization of structures in nature and engineering. Proc. IV. Int. Congr. Techn. Biol. & Bionics. Munich, 1213 June 1998. (Nachtigall & Wisser, eds.) G.Fischer, Stuttgart, Biona 12, 149–160.
Miura K. (1980). Method of packaging and deployment of large membranes in space. Proc. 31st Congr. Int. Astronaut. Federation, IAF-80-A 31 Tokyo, 1–10.
Miura K. & Natori M. (1985). 2-D array experiment on board a space flyer unit. Space Solar Power Rev. 5, 345–356.
Miura K. (1993). Concepts of deployable Space structures. Int J. Space Struct. 8, 1–2, 3–16.
Robinson K. (1998). Open up, the weather’s fine. Biophotonics Int. 5/61998, 86–87.
Skaer R.J. & Picken L.E.R. (1965). The pleated surface of the undischarged thread of a Nematocyst and its simulation by models. J. exp.Biol. 45, 173–176.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2000 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this paper
Cite this paper
Kresling, B. (2000). Coupled Mechanisms in Biological Deployable Structures. In: Pellegrino, S., Guest, S.D. (eds) IUTAM-IASS Symposium on Deployable Structures: Theory and Applications. Solid Mechanics and Its Applications, vol 80. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9514-8_25
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9514-8_25
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-5539-2
Online ISBN: 978-94-015-9514-8
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive