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The mkiv Supra Owners Club

3d printing....of a bearing??


jackso11

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We use to use this process for making new toy prototypes when I worked for ELC, it has been around for a number of years. It is very quick and you can basically produce anything to a certain size; interlinked chains, complex interlinked puzzles, hinges, etc. It's also possible to do completely transparent models using the same process. The prototypes and CAD drawings are also used when producing the tooling for the injection moulding.

 

A lot of the new toys photographed in the ELC catalogue are prototypes like this that have been sprayed up to look like the real finished product.

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I have seen something along the same lines but, a little more complex in an F1 team model shop. They used composite materials and lasers but, essentially did the same thing. Built a 3D working part up layer by layer…..that was a decade ago though :)

 

I saw the same thing at Renault F1 a few years ago, clever stuff

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We use stuff like that all the time. Rapid prototyping has gone from very expensive, poorly detailed models made in crappy plastics that warp and swell to parts you can actually use and look and feel like the finished article. Lots of parts on concept and show cars and even low volume production parts are made using similar processes now.

 

For something really trick, you can use a similar process not to make a part, but to make a set of sand molds so you can make prototype or one off castings with zero tooling investment. I've had company in Germany make me a cylinder head like this. Very cool! :)

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I saw ok tv that plans to colonise the moon or marswill utilise this.

 

Take up a 3d printer, a load of blueprint files and raw material and then they can make almost anything needed to build or repair things quick and easy. And if they don't have the skills to program something specific a bod on earth does it and beams it up.

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I believe my brother designed a car in CAD and used one of these printers to build a model of it. It was really cool. We had the model out in the house recently, but I think he may have taken it to his. If I see it, I will get a photo of it and upload it. :)

 

They are really cool machines.

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  • 1 month later...

CAD:

 

http://www.designerspace.com/cars-l/2008/06/i16739i9-20080617162107.jpg

 

image

 

image

 

image

 

3D Printing:

 

http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/6903/img0154dk.jpg

 

http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/8643/img0155yh.jpg

 

http://img585.imageshack.us/img585/7789/img0156om.jpg

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We had a Stereolithography machine in our office for a short while, so there are plenty of engine assembly's knocking around here ranging from scaled blocks to full size series turbos with associated interstage ducts. Was useful for the block and head guys to segment the models and view the cooling passages. Rather than using powder it is resin based which is then cured in layers. The structure is quite tough and feels like a brittle plastic.

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