News and Insights of 3D Printing and Manufacturing
Automotive giant Ford has developed a novel way to combine driver biometrics with 3D printing to deter car thieves. The innovative new product—bespoke 3D printed locking nuts—can be used to keep alloy wheels safe from theft.
In this month’s AM Focus we sought out to answer one big question: how far along is automotive digital mass production using 3D printing technologies. The answer is: not that far at all. In fact, it’s already here.
Czinger, a Los Angeles-based company founded last year by Divergent3D founder Kevin Czinger, has revealed the first details about its first hypercar, the Czinger 21C. Created by “21st century artisans” using additive manufacturing technologies, the innovative hypercar will make its global debut at the upcoming Geneva International Motor Show next month.
Showing off during tests at the Barcelona Circuit, Additive Industries‘ Technology Partner F1 team Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen dropped its special snakeskin livery camouflage on the C39 and revealed the latest changes in the 2020 season bodywork. Race drivers Kimi Räikkönen and Antonio Giovinazzi, alongside reserve driver Robert Kubica and development driver Tatiana Calderon, pulled the covers off the C39 during a roll-out presentation in the pitlane at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Spanish sports car brand CUPRA is seeing the benefits of adopting 3D printing on the racetrack. The company, which has integrated 3D printed components made using HP’s Multi Jet Fusion technology into its new CUPRA Leon Competición vehicle, has reported greater efficiency in its production process thanks to AM.
At the BAUTEC conference in Berlin, Italcementi presented a new concrete mixture developed specifically for construction 3D printing applications. The new mixture is developed to be fast setting, in order to enable deposition of more complex geometries, and also more sustainable, in line with the company’s targets for more sustainable construction processes.
Chinese construction 3D printing company WinSun is deploying its technology to help contain and fight the coronavirus outbreak in Hubei province. According to a recent release, WinSun plans to 3D print and ship 200 isolation wards to the region, which will be used to house medical staff.
“New manufacturing processes only come once every several decades,” says Jonah Myerberg, Co-founder and CTO of Desktop Metal, one of the most interesting companies in the global additive manufacturing landscape today. In this one-hour webinar, Mr. Myerberg discusses how Desktop Metal’s bound metal AM technologies can benefit manufacturing processes at all levels.
Although we have not been able to establish a direct channel with their team, EDAG remains one of the most interesting, innovative and capable firms in the entire automotive additive production scenario. After showing some of the interesting cases and research studies in the automotive segment, the German design studio is now tackling materials with the CustoMat_3D research project.
Luxury car manufacturer Porsche has introduced a new concept for sports car seating that leverages 3D printing and lattice design. The seating concept, called “3D-printed bodyform full-bucket seat,” enables customers to personalize their seat for comfort and is partly inspired by seat fittings designed for professional motorsports.