Origami-inspired folding bridge could aid disaster relief

The Mobile Bridge Version 4.0 (MB4.0) can fit in a car trailer, and unfolds in a scissor-like fashion to span small rivers and ravines. Its first construction test took place last month over the Hongo River in Fukuyama City, near Hiroshima in southwest Japan.

“From this test of a new bridge concept, the next generation of bridge technology starts on a new stage in the field of bridge engineering,” said Dr Ario, who is assistant professor at the Institute of Engineering, Hiroshima University.

“It is possible to use a real deployable and smart bridge with a scissor-type bridge system using this structural theory.”

From arrival on site, MB4.0 takes approximately one hour to deploy, with the actual extension time taking just five minutes. It is claimed that the patented scissor mechanism outperforms the older block assembly method of construction, making MB4.0 “the world’s lightest, fastest, largest, strongest and lightest expanding temporary bridge.”