Sample Project Ideas

Below is a list of possible project ideas. The source of the project idea—extracted from lecture (L) or class (C) notes, or old (O) lecture notes from Fall 2010—is noted when applicable.

Design/Build/Art

SES # PROJECT IDEAS
C06
  • Design and build a rigid origami structure.
C08
  • Design a fold-and-cut alphabet, preferably using a small number of simple folds.
  • Fold-and-cut art à la Peter Callesen.
  • Animate motion for 3D polyhedra flattening.
C09
  • How does real paper behave when folding a hypar?
L10
  • Create a Kempe-inspired linkage.
  • Design linkages to draw letters of the alphabet.
L12
  • Design and build a tensegrity sculpture.
C14
  • Design elegant hinged dissections.
  • Design / build reconfigurable furniture.

Coding

SES # PROJECT IDEAS
  • Higher dimension folding visualizer.
L03
  • Implement local foldability tester which generates a M/V pattern.
C04
  • Implement algorithm to generate an arbitrary black/white pixel pattern using checkerboard results.
C05
  • Improve/extend the interface or capabilities of Tess. Possibly 3D animation through interfacing with Rigid Origami Simulator.
C06
  • Port Tomohiro Tachi's software to MacOS®/Linux®.
C08
  • Implement/improve on a fold-and-cut design tool, ideally including M/V state, degeneracy tool, and folded state. Possibly porting to Javascript™.
  • Animate motion for 3D polyhedra flattening.
L10
  • Create a Kempe simulation.
C10
  • Implement Kempe with splines.
L11
  • JavaScript rigidity/over-bracing /pebble algorithm visualization tool.
C11
  • Improve Henneberg construction/puzzle applet, port to web/JavaScript.
L12
  • Make a virtual tensegrity simulator.
  • Create a stress/lifting correspondence visualizer.
L13
  • Implement pointed pseudotriangulation algorithm.
  • Implement (infinitesimal) locked linkage tester/designer tool.
C14
  • Implement hinged dissection animator: slender adornments, general algorithm, and/or polyform algorithm.
C15
  • Implement continuous blooming algorithms.
L16
  • Implement orthogonal polyhedra unfolding.
L18
  • Combine gluing algorithm and Alexandrov algorithm to automate case studies similar to square or Latin cross.

Open Problems

SES # PROJECT IDEAS
  • Problem set 1, problem 2 many-layers version.
  • What is the minimum number of creases needed to be removed to make a crease pattern flat-foldable?
L02
  • Pseudopolynomial upper/lower bounds for strip method of folding anything.
  • Characterize possible seam placements.
C03
  • Characterize single-vertex flat-foldable 3D crease patterns.
L04
  • Optimal wrapping of other shapes by a square.
  • Optimal wrapping of a cube with an x × y rectangle of paper.
  • Do there exist other optimal wrappings of a cube by a square?
  • Lower bounds for checkerboard folding.
C04
  • Optimal 2×2 checkerboard folding.
C06
  • For sufficiently small, rigid motion, is local foldability enough?
  • Computational complexity of determining rigid foldability of crease patterns.
  • Can a paper shopping bag be unfolded from the flat state by adding extra creases?
C07
  • Universal folding of polyhedra other than boxes (e.g., polyoctahedra).
  • Is there a simpler proof of flat-foldability NP-hardness?
  • 3×n map folding. [Hard]
L08
  • Prove a lower bound on number of creases in fold-and-cut related to local feature size.
  • Higher dimensional fold-and-cut.
  • Instantaneous flattening of polyhedral complexes.
  • Connected configuration space of polyhedral piece of paper?
  • Prove conjectures about linear and circular corridor density.
C08
  • Fold-and-cut with arcs of constant curvature.
  • Can we continuously flatten nonconvex polyhedra?
  • Prove conjectures about linear and circular corridor density.
L09
  • Do triangulated creases for hypars exist for all numbers of pleats and angles?
  • Do circular pleats exist? [Hard]
  • What is the maximum volume whose surface is a folding of a teabag.
C09
  • What creases work for regular k-gon pleats?
  • Tight bounds for 1D pleat folding (allowing unfolding).
  • Find an explicit example of a 1D M/V pattern which requires Ω(n/lg n) folds.
  • Computational complexity of finding the shortest fold sequence to produce a given 1D M/V pattern (allowing unfolding).
L10
  • Characterize when there are folding motions for paper with holes.
  • Does adding a finite number of creases suffice to allow a folding motion between two folded states if the target folded state does not touch itself?
L11
  • Develop a faster 2D rigidity testing algorithm, or prove a lower bound. [Hard]
  • Characterize generic 3D rigidity. [Hard]
L13
  • Prove lower bound relating to feature size on number of steps to unfold polygon.
  • Improve step bound for energy method to unfold polygon.
  • Is there a unique minimum-energy configuration of a polygon?
  • Are there nonlinear locked trees of less than 8 bars?
  • Characterize locked linear trees.
  • Is there a locked equilateral anything in 3D?
L14
  • Are there nonslender adornments that never lock?
C14
  • 5D and higher dissections.
  • Efficient algorithm to check for matching Dehn invariants.
  • Any algorithm to find a dissection when one exists.
L15
  • Edge unfolding convex prismatoids.
  • General unfolding polyhedra. [Hard]
  • Can the star unfolding (or other edge/general unfoldings) be continuously bloomed?
  • Edge unfolding a convex polyhedron into o(F) parts?
C15
  • Does inverted sun unfolding (source/star) avoid overlap?
  • Does every Johnson solid have an edge zipper unfolding?
  • Does every convex polyhedron have a general zipper unfolding?
  • Which triangulated polyhedra are ununfoldable after attaching a witch's hat to each face?
  • Are 12-face polyhedra unununfoldable?
  • Can prismatoids or even prismoids be fully band unfolded?
  • Continuous blooming of star unfolding, sun unfolding, all edge unfoldings, all unfoldings, or orthogonal polyhedra.
L16
  • Vertex unfolding convex polyhedra. [Hard]
  • Grid unfolding orthogonal polyhedra. [Hard]
C16
  • Convex-faced vertex-ununfoldable polyhedron.
  • Unfolding hexagonal polyhedra.
L17
  • Prove dependence of algorithms for Alexandrov's Theorem on feature size.
C17
  • Algorithm for Burago-Zalgaller Theorem guaranteeing nonconvex polyhedron for any gluing.
L18
  • Complexity of whether a polygon of paper can be glued into a convex polyhedron.
L19
  • Which polyhedra have common unfoldings?
  • Are there two polycubes with no common grid unfolding?
  • Close the genus gap for nonorthogonal polyhedra with orthogonal faces.
  • Minimum perimeter (and area) folding of a sphere.
L20
  • Complexity of 3D min/max span.
  • Flat-state connectivity of open chain, orthogonal tree, etc.
  • Locked equilateral equiangular fixed-angle chain?
L21
  • PTAS or APX-hardness for optimal folding in HP model?
  • Unique foldings in nonsquare HP model?
  • Minimum number of cuts to unlock an n-bar open chain?
  • Smallest k-chain that interlocks with a 2-chain?
O21
  • Complexity of shortest flip sequence.
  • Maximum number of flipturns.
  • Characterize infinitely deflatable polygons.