Folding a Rigid Flat Surface Around a Square Hub

In the paper we investigate rigid origami patterns that enables a zero-thickness rigid flat surface to wrap around a square hub with the objective to package solar panels around a cubesat. After a detailed analysis on the rigid foldability of two known patterns, namely the winding membrane and box patterns, we conclude that neither of the patterns can be directly applied to wrap a solar panel, and thus a number of modified patterns are proposed that are capable of rigid folding with one or two degrees of freedom. Their folding sequences are presented and the advantages and shortcomings of the modified patterns are discussed so that designers can make an informed decision when making the selection. Finally we summarised our approach and briefly discussed the possibility to extend our approach to accommodate thick panels.