ThreadTessel: A Modularized Tangible Toolkit Leveraging Origami Tessellation for Designing Thread-actuated Shape-changing Structures

Because of its nature of physical deformation, origami, particularly origami tessellation, has been used in various fields such as engineering, clinical medicine, architecture, and art. In this paper, we present ThreadTessel, a tangible toolkit consisting of modular triangular pieces that enable users to create thread-pulling-actuated shape-changing structures. To motivate and guide the design of ThreadTessel, we first constructed a taxonomy of movable origami tessellation. The taxonomy includes design dimensions such as assembly patterns, spatial motions, and the control mechanism, which can potentially support the design-space exploration. We then evaluated the performance of the thread-pulling mechanism, providing users with an understanding of the thread actuation principles and motion curve patterns. Furthermore, we evaluated ThreadTessel with a series of design workshops, involving 20 participants in total. The workshop results showed that participants could quickly learn to use the toolkit, and found the process was engaging. Participants also found the ThreadTessel supported their creativity in various design context, and facilitated group design collaboration. Our workshops resulted in more than ten tessellation-based shape-changing prototypes, further showcasing the usability of ThreadTessel. © 2025 Copyright held by the owner/author(s).