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Weird science: Researchers think inexpensive parachute with tons of holes has commercial value

A research team from the Mechanical Engineering Department at Polytechnique Montreal recently published an article in the prestigious journal Nature unveiling a new parachute concept inspired by kirigami, the Japanese art of paper folding and cutting that children use to make paper snowflakes. Possible applications range from new ways for humanitarian missions to deliver food, water, and medicine to space exploration.

Kirigami is a technique that modifies the mechanical properties of a sheet of material by making precise folds and cuts to it. Children use it to make snowflakes out of paper, and engineers have used it to create extensible structures, flexible medical devices, and deployable spatial structures. However, kirigami techniques have never been applied to parachute production.

The Polytechnique Montreal research team has changed that.

Through a new project led by professors David Melancon and Frederick Gosselin from Polytechnique Montreal's Mechanical Engineering Department, a new type of parachute made from a plastic sheet cut in a "closed-loop" kirigami pattern as been developed.

The pattern used gives the sheet of plastic new mechanical properties. In free fall, it assumes the shape of an upside-down bell when any type of weight or object is attached to its center.

"One advantage of this parachute is that it quickly stabilizes and doesn't pitch, regardless of the release angle," says Melancon, co-author of the article. "And, unlike conventional parachutes, it follows a strict ballistic descent trajectory."

It also does deliver test objects sorta safely and accurately, despite its Swiss cheese construction. Obviously, this will be a point of refinement.

The research team believes these characteristics could be useful for purposes ranging from parcel delivery in remote areas to exploration of Mars in outer space. However, in their view, the most likely and practical application in the near future is humanitarian aid deliveries of water, food, and medicine, particularly since the parachute has a very low production cost.

VIDEO: This parachute is full of holes -- and that's a good thing. [Credit: Polytechnique Montreal]

"We made these parachutes by laser cutting, but a simple die-cutting press would also do the trick," Melancon says. "What's more, the parachute is seamless and is attached to the payload by a single suspension line, making it easy to use and to deploy."

The researchers tested their concept through numerical simulations, wind-tunnel tests, laboratory drops, and outdoor drops from a drone. The tests point toward a considerable potential that has yet to be explored.

"The parachute's behavior doesn't change, even when the size of the device is augmented," says Gosselin. "This suggests that it could be scaled up for larger applications."

The Polytechnique Montreal research team is now working on identifying new cutting patterns to endow the parachutes with different and new properties. "We want to change the patterns in order to go even further; the parachutes could descend in a spiral, for example, or glide before dropping," says Melancon. "We would also like to be able to vary the trajectory of descent depending on the payload, so the cargo could be sorted as the parachutes come down to Earth. This is a whole new design endeavor that opens up a multitude of possibilities."

Source: Polytechnique Montreal

Published October 2025

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