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What is the name of the field of mathematics which can be used to describe folded objects like blankets, aprons, and paper origami. I'm looking along the lines of a tuple with custom entriesor sth similar to describe the folding process with the end result fully deducable from the tuple (a separate simpler model for blankets could also be used).

Willie Wong
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user100380
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    One sure is tempted to use the tag [tag:manyfolds] instead of [tag:manifolds] for this question... – gebruiker Jun 18 '15 at 08:20
  • I'm removing the tag "manifolds" as this question has nothing to do with them. Manifolds are special kind of topological spaces, and as to my knowledge, doesn't have anything to do with "folds". – Balarka Sen Jun 18 '15 at 08:32
  • Maybe topology? Not sure, but I think topology deals with transforms of objects without changing their "connectedness", such as stretching, scaling, or folding... – Bernhard Jun 18 '15 at 08:47
  • @BernhardGeiger: definitely not topology. – Willie Wong Jun 18 '15 at 08:47
  • As a starter, watch this video. – achille hui Jun 18 '15 at 08:57
  • Thanks for your comments. Not manifolds or topology, perhaps more akin to knot theory, but we're using rectangular (or other, eg., apron), and want to mathematize (a) the folding procedd, and (b), the end redult. – user100380 Jun 18 '15 at 13:29

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Rather unsurprisingly the field of mathematics that studies origami (and other folded objects) is called, wait for it, mathematical origami.

The Wikipedia has an entry on it with decent references; two of the recognized experts in the US in this field are Robert Lang and Erik Demaine. Lang's Origami Design Secrets and Demaine and O'Rourke's Geometric folding algorithms are probably good places to start your research.

Willie Wong
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