  The design of effective and compact energy absorption systems is key to the
survivability and durability of many man-made structures and machines. To this
end, this work presents the design, assessment, and implementation of a novel
origami-inspired energy absorber that is based on the Kresling origami pattern.
The absorber consists of a Kresling origami column positioned between the
loading point and an energy dissipation module. By exploiting its unique
inherent translation-to-rotation coupling feature, the primary function of the
Kresling column is to transmit uniaxial incident loads (shock or impact) into
localized rotational energy that can then be dissipated in a viscous fluid
chamber. The proposed system has several unique advantages over traditional
designs including the ability to i) dissipate energy associated with both
torsional and uniaxial loads, ii) control the rotational velocity profile to
maximize energy dissipation, and iii) customize the restoring-force behavior of
the Kresling column to different applications. Furthermore, the proposed design
is more compact since it can realize the same stroke distance of the
traditional translational design while being considerably shorter. Through
extensive computational modeling, parametric studies, and experimental testing,
it is demonstrated that the proposed design can be optimized to absorb all the
imparted energy; and out of the absorbed energy, around 40% is dissipated in
the viscous fluid, while the rest is either dissipated by the viscoelasticity
of the origami column or stored in it as potential energy.
