Lia Coleman
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Rigid Folding Shelter

 

RIGID ORIGAMI SHELTER

MIT, Geometric Folding Algorithms, Spring 2017.

At MIT, I designed and built a rigid shelter that starts out as a textbook-sized object, and expands 11 times its size to a hard-case dome large enough to fit one person. The crease pattern for the shelter was inspired by an umbrella.

I fabricated the 1-meter-in-diameter physical model out of laser-cut acrylic and vinyl.

As opposed to a tent, the rigidity of the acrylic structure provides portable shelter in desert environments or windy conditions.

This structure was not only beautiful in how it was designed to symmetrically unfold, but was also in how it was carefully engineered to provide quick, deployable shelter.


 
 
 

The Design and Fabrication

Designed and fabricated at MIT. Achieved a 9% volume compression ratio. Geometric Folding Algorithms, Spring 2017.

Project Proposal

 
 

Issuu is a digital publishing platform that makes it simple to publish magazines, catalogs, newspapers, books, and more online. Easily share your publications and get them in front of Issuu's millions of monthly readers.

Dimension and angle calculations.

Prototyping in paper.

Crease pattern for laser cut acrylic pieces. Made in Adobe Rhino.