Abstract
Any polyhedral structure composed of identical regular polygons can be turned into an expandable structure by replacing the polygons by pairs of polygons which can rotate about a common central hinge, and connecting a vertex of an upper polygon with the vertex of a lower polygon of an adjacent pair. Most of these structures will collapse in the fully expanded position by losing their rigidity near the final stage, and hence, become deployable. A triangular element which enables one to assemble and dismantle such structures is presented here, together with a series of examples of experimental shapes.
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