Method for forming three-dimensional support structure
AssigneeTessellated Group, LLC
InventorGregory W. Gale
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A three-dimensional support structure is provided and includes a single sheet of material that is folded into a repeating pattern of cells. Each of the cells is formed by first and second spaced-apart endwalls and first and second sloped sidewalls spanning between the endwalls. Each endwall comprises two plies of material while each sidewall comprises a single ply of material. The first and second sidewalls are adjoined at a folded edge. The cells are aligned such that the first endwall of one cell from the repeating pattern abuts the second endwall of an adjacent cell of the repeating pattern to form a four-ply wall of the material. A first liner may be attached to a first side of the folded material and a second liner may be attached to a second side of the folded material.
Claims20
A method for creating a three-dimensional support structure having opposite first and second surfaces, comprising providing a single sheet of foldable material having first and second orthogonal axes and a plurality of first crease paths spaced apart along the first axis and a plurality of second crease paths spaced apart along the second axis wherein each first crease path includes a repeating pattern of a line segment having opposite first and second ends and of first and second chevron legs extending respectively from the first and second ends of the line segment at an obtuse angle from the line segment in the same direction relative to the first axis and in opposite directions relative to the second axis with each of the first and second chevron legs having an end and being equal in length and wherein one of the plurality of second crease paths has at least first and second path segments extending between the ends of the first chevron leg of each adjacent pair of first crease paths and another of the plurality of second crease paths has at least first and second path segments extending between the ends of the second chevron leg of each adjacent pair of first crease paths, folding the sheet of foldable material along each of the first crease paths and along each of the first path segments in a first direction and along each of the second path segments in a second direction opposite to the first direction so that each first crease paths forms a ridge disposed in the first surface of the support structure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.