Bi-stable composite shells

Abstract

This paper is concerned with a new type of deployable structures that can be rolled up like a tape measure but, unlike a tape measure, are stable in two different configurations. The key to the behaviour of these structures is a particular type of composite construction based on an anti-symmetric lay-up of glass fibres in a polypropylene matrix. The paper presents a finite element analysis using the ABAQUS package of the process of rolling up a bi-stable cylindrical shell. The results of this simulation provide considerable new insights into the structural mechanics of bi-stable shells, as well as predicting the stress distribution, curvature variation, etc. in the rolledup shell.