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Current Research

Harnessing the mechanics of basket weaving to create 3D functional structures and metamaterials

@Deployable and Reconfigurable Structures Lab, University of Michigan

Nov 2023 -- Now

Basket weaving is a craft form that has traditionally been used to create artistically appealing and practically useful three dimensional (3D) objects such as containers, furniture, and wearable items. However, the mechanics behind this technique and the potential of using it to create 3D functional structures remain underexplored. We explore the sophisticated geometric mechanics of woven structures, what unique advantages basket weaving brings in terms of structural properties, and how we use the geometric and mechanics principle to design and fabricate 3D functional woven structures and metamaterials.

  • Integrating active material into 3D plain weaves for load-bearing robotic textiles, Soft Robotics (Submitted)

Previous Research

Modular origami structures for multifunctional cloaking and protection

@Deployable and Reconfigurable Structures Lab, University of Michigan

Sep 2022 -- Sep 2023

Two-dimensional (2D) origami tessellations such as the Miura-ori are often generalized to build three-dimensional (3D) architected materials with sandwich or cellular structures. However, such 3D blocks are densely packed with continuity of the internal material, while for many engineering structures with multi-physical functionality, it is necessary to have thin sheets that are separately spaced and sparsely connected. We present a framework for the design and analysis of multi-layered spaced origami, which provides an origami solution for 3D structures where multiple flat sheets are intentionally spaced apart. We show possible applications by demonstrating how the multi-layered spaced origami can be used to build deployable acoustic cloaks and heat shields.

Cloak.png

Soft gripper with switchable modes

@Soft Robotics Laboratory, Chongqing University

Dec. 2016 -- Feb. 2018 

Soft grippers are known for their natural adaptability to objects of different sizes and shapes, but when it comes to large-scale variations in size and shape, such adaptability is far from enough. We designed a pneumatic soft gripper with switchable gripping modes (check out the video on the left). For this purpose, we combined the traditional soft gripper with a posture-transforming mechanism. 

Acoustic metamaterials for wave manipulation

@Smart Materials and Structures Laboratory, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

May 2021 -- May 2022

We combine the valley Hall effect and the tunneling effect of local resonant metamaterials to reveal some novel coupling transport phenomena in elastic systems. First, we implement a low-frequency (<1 kHz) valley-locked waveguide in heterostructures based on the topological valley edge state of the local resonant metamaterial. Next, we introduce tunneling phenomena into the topological valley-locked waveguide, enabling the realization of an on-off controllable heterojunction by sandwiching crystals with different Dirac cones. Finally, we explore potential applications such as signal splitters, energy concentrators, and logical gates, both numerically and experimentally. 

Dynamics, detection, and control of instability in milling of thin-walled structures

@Nonlinear Dynamics Group, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Sep. 2019 -- May 2022

We modeled the milling process of thin-walled structures, utilized time-frequency analysis and nonlinear mode decomposition techniques to characterize instability dynamics, and proposed efficient algorithms to detect the instability. We also used piezoelectric actuators to develop a 'smart spindle' system to control chatter vibrations and thus eliminate the instability. 

Copyright © Wayne Tu 2025

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