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3D Systems Awarded Department of Defense Contract to Solve Navy Ship Corrosion Issues

Corrosion is inevitable when metal and other parts are exposed to the salt air—and especially routinely, as is the case for military ships and other hardware. The Department of Defense (DoD), in an attempt to battle the rigors of nature, has awarded a contract to 3D Systems for research and development in ‘Corrosion Performance Design Guide for Direct Metal Printing of Nickel Alloys.’

While 3D Systems is noted as a leader in the world of 3D solutions and workflow systems, the DoD chose them for the contract due to their capabilities in collecting data on corrosion and then developing new production via direct metal printing (DMP); in fact, 3D Systems technology and expertise are considered to be ideal for creating munitions as well as shipbuilding especially, due to excellent quality control of parts and low oxygen content.

During this contract, 3D Systems will also be partnering with Newport News Shipbuilding and Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, along with University of Akron corrosion experts. The goal is to reduce maintenance costs in naval sea systems, and as experts in materials science, the team at 3D Systems has excellent knowledge of metals and how they corrode.

“We believe that post-processes for additively manufactured components can be designed to limit corrosion in a saltwater environment,” said Dr. Jared Blecher, principal, aerospace & defense engineering, 3D Systems.

“Through our research and development efforts, corrosion rates will be quantified for additively manufactured parts, so end users will have better data for deciding when parts should be inspected or replaced. Additionally, we’ll explore the value of heat treatment to help improve the mechanical properties of the part and mitigate corrosion and ultimately cost.”

As 3D Systems, Newport News Shipbuilding, and Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems work together to target nickel alloy corrosion difficulties in a list of 240 tests with four different surface finishes, 3D Systems will also be able to make sure that parameters and integrated software are used correctly during evaluation of the issues—mainly seen in naval sea system platforms and high-speed weapons.

The Corrosion Guide will explore how metal additive manufacturing can positively impact shipbuilding and munition fabrication. (Image courtesy of Huntington Ingalls Industries)

The researchers will also use a variety of heat treatments to evaluate the following:

Crevice
Stress corrosion cracking
Galavanic corrosion modes

They will also simulate:

Range of surface conditions
Elemental micro-segregation
Deleterious secondary phases found in deployed components

“There’s no question that the DoD’s need for rapid qualification and certification of additive manufacturing processes like DMP using metal materials like Nickel alloys is great. The creation of a performance design guide by 3D Systems and its project partners will be of tremendous value to the DoD,” said America Makes Executive Director John Wilczynski.

“With qualified empirical data on how to minimize saltwater corrosion of additive manufactured components used in weapon systems, defense supply chains can accelerate their adoption of additive technologies to manufacture these critical components.”

Recent studies have shown that corrosion issues are extremely expensive, costing the U.S. Navy over $8.5 billion a year. Because corrosion is only exaggerated due to traditional manufacturing methods which add stress and weakening, AM processes can offer a host of benefits, plus corrosion resistance. Once corrosion issues are out of the way, not only is there a tremendous savings for the budget, the military can avoid less maintenance time and less inspections.

“We’re excited to partner with 3D Systems on this important effort,” said Charles Southall, vice president of engineering and design for Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. “Last year, we collaborated to qualify metal additive manufacturing technologies to build naval warships, and installed 3D Systems’ DMP technology. We’re looking forward to expanding that work by developing design standards to help create more durable parts, and ultimately improve the quality of our armed forces’ fleet.”

3D Systems was selected during a competition headed by America Makes, the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute, and the Department of Defense. The program is a Directed Project Opportunity on Advanced Tools for Rapid Qualification (ATRQ), funded by the Manufacturing and Industrial Base Policy Office within the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

The DoD has had its hands in many 3D printing ventures over the years from government projects to help with 3D printing to research and development for materials, to the development of 3D printers.

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[Source / Images: press release]

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3D Printing News Briefs: April 10, 2019

We’ve got some business news for you in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, before moving on to an upcoming industry event and new materials. 3DVinci Creations and the American University in Dubai will establish a facility for concrete 3D printing, while Telset signed a contract with Relativity. Lincoln Electric has acquired Baker Industries for its 3D printing technology, and Jabil is sharing the results of its survey report on 3D printing. Next month is the NAMIC Summit, with its flagship DfAM event, and Nile Polymers has announced two new PVDF filaments.

Agreement Signed to Establish Center for 3D Concrete Printing

A cooperation agreement was signed between 3DVinci Creations, the American University in Dubai (AUD), Arabtec Construction Company, and global engineering consultancy firm Robert Bird Group to establish The Center for 3D Concrete Printing and Digital Construction on AUD’s campus. The scientific research center, equipped with a 3DVinci Creations 3D printer, will serve researchers from the university’s three project partners, as well as university students and members of the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture. It will build partnerships, create a consortium of academic, government, and industry entities interested in the growing 3D concrete printing and digital construction fields, work with state officials to promote 3D printing culture in construction, and eventually develop and administer training workshops and seminars on concrete 3D printing.

“With this cooperation agreement, we aim to perform strategic analyses of the present and future capabilities of 3D Concrete Printing and of digitally-driven construction systems. The Center will work with local regulatory bodies to develop newly updated building codes that pertain to 3D printed buildings and structures,” said Edouard Baaklini, CEO of 3DVinci Creations. “We will also develop cost models of 3D Printed Concrete buildings and structures together with tools for value analysis vis-à-vis traditional construction methodologies.”

Relativity Signs Contract with Telesat

Los Angeles 3D printed rocket manufacturer Relativity just signed its first public, multi-year commercial contract with satellite services vendor Telesat. This is a big deal, as it’s the first agreement between a major satellite operator and a venture-backed “New Space” industry company. It costs about $10 million for Relativity to launch a 1,250 kg payload to low Earth orbit – a price that’s $10 to $20 million less than it would be using a European Ariane rocket or Indian PSLV rocket. The company can keep its costs down by using automation and metal 3D printing in its design and manufacturing processes, and claims its rockets can be made in just 60 days, with far less components. Relativity has completed 136 engine tests and is currently testing its avionics systems, with the first launch of its 3D printed Terran 1 rocket scheduled for the end of 2020.

“Early in our LEO program we decided that, in addition to working with outstanding leaders in satellite manufacturing and launch services who we know well, Telesat should also include New Space companies whose technologies and manufacturing methods offer lower costs and greater flexibility for deploying our constellation. Relativity is just such a company with their metal 3D printing, use of robotics and other advances,” said Dave Wendling, Telesat’s CTO. “Telesat continues to establish a world-class supplier team to construct, deploy and operate our global LEO network and we are very pleased to welcome Relativity to the Telesat LEO program.”

Lincoln Electric Acquires Baker Industries

According to a report published last year by SmarTech Industries, the global additive manufacturing market grew 18% to reach $9.3 billion in size, and Lincoln Electric (LECO) wanted a piece of that pie. The company announced that it has acquired Detroit-based Baker Industries, which developed 3D printing tech for the aerospace and automotive industries, for an undisclosed sum as part of a previously announced initiative to expand into the AM industry.

Baker was founded in 1992 to manufacture custom fixtures, parts, and tooling that are Nadcap-accredited, AS9100D-certified, and adhere to the tough aerospace quality management standards. While you can learn more about its services in the video below, Baker primarily offers CNC machining, design, fabrication, prototyping, quality assurance, tooling, and 3D printing services to its customers. With its acquisition of Baker, Lincoln will be able to position itself in the ever growing AM, automation, and tooling sector.

Jabil Shares Results of Survey Report

According to the 2019 Additive Materials and 3D Printing study by Jabil, the practical applications in 3D printing have grown significantly over the last two years. The company surveyed over 300 professionals who are responsible for 3D printing at manufacturing companies, and found that the technology has found its way into almost every step of production, though prototyping still remains the most popular application.

Jabil shared how several key industries, such as medical, transportation, and aerospace, are using the technology today, and reported that 25% of respondents said that 3D printing can be as much as 20 times faster than traditional forms of manufacturing – obviously a major benefit. Jabil itself has adopted the technology at some of its sites because it takes 3D printing very seriously, and believes that the technology “has unlimited potential in the future.” Nearly all of the survey’s respondents said they expected their companies’ 3D printing use to increase over the next two to five years. You can read the full survey report here.

DfAM Conference at NAMIC Summit Coming Up

Next month in Singapore, the 2019 NAMIC Summit will take place from May 6-10, with its flagship event – the Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM) Conference & AM Industry Showcase – happening on May 7th at the Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre. You can register now for the event to take advantage of early bird rates.

You can spend the day meeting other like-minded professionals in networking sessions, or take in a presentation by one of over ten distinguished speakers who will be sharing their knowledge about simulation and modeling, industrial applications of digital design solutions, and generative design For example, John Barnes, the founder and managing director of The Barnes Group Advisors, will be speaking about “Design for Manufacturing: The Transformative Role of Design in Driving Innovation in the Future of Manufacturing” at 9:30 am, and the CEO and co-founder of Assembrix Ltd, Lior Polak, will present “Distributed Manufacturing in Action: Dynamic Machine Allocation and Real-Time Monitoring at 1:30 pm.

Nile Polymers Introduces New Additions to Fluorinar PVDF Family

Utah-based Nile Polymers, which offers an industrial-grade PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) filament based on Arkema’s Kynar PVDF material, just announced the addition of two new filaments to its Fluorinar PVDF family – Fluorinar-B and Fluorinar-ESD, also built on Arkema’s Kynar. Chemical-resistant Fluorinar filaments differ from other PVDF materials because they don’t have any additional diluents or polymer additives, and they are tough, flexible, high-strength, and offer flame suppression and UV protection qualities. Sample filaments are available for both

Black-colored Fluorinar-B combines the company’s Fluorosmooth adhesive, which increases the surface energy of a print at its interface with a glass build plate, with the dependability of Kynar PVDF, and carbon pigment increases the part’s tensile strength and permeation resistance as well. Graphene-enhanced electrostatic dissipation (ESD) filament Fluorinar-ESD is perfect for applications that have parts which can’t tolerate static build-up, and calibrates impact strength and melt viscosity carefully so the final part is durable and strong.

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Auburn University Receives NASA Contract to Develop 3D Printing Techniques to Improve Liquid Rocket Engines

L-R: Auburn University’s John Mason and Patrick Scheuermann, director of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, sign a Space Act Agreement [2015 Image: Auburn University]

Back in 2015, Auburn University and NASA signed a Space Act Agreement for the purposes of exploring and advancing additive manufacturing applications and research together. The university has remained committed to 3D printing, and aerospace, over the years, working with NASA in a public-private partnership to establish its National Center for Additive Manufacturing Excellence (NCAME) two years ago for the purpose of improve the performance of 3D printed parts, respond to workforce development needs in the AM industry, and share research results with collaborators.

Now, the university’s Samuel Ginn College of Engineering has announced that NASA awarded a three-year, $5.2 million contract to NCAME to research and create 3D printing techniques to help improve the performance of liquid rocket engines. The work covered under the contract is part of NASA’s Rapid Analysis and Manufacturing Propulsion Technology (RAMPT) project, and is just the latest development to come out of Auburn’s relationship with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

“This partnership with Auburn University and industry will help develop improvements for liquid rocket engines, as well as contribute to commercial opportunities. The technologies developed by this team will be made available widely to the private sector, offering more companies the opportunity to use these advanced manufacturing techniques,” said Paul McConnaughey, the Deputy Director of Marshall Space Flight Center.

RAMPT is centered around evolving lightweight, large-scale novel and 3D printing techniques for developing and fabricating regeneratively cooled thrust chamber assemblies for use in liquid rocket engines. NCAME already collaborates with more than 70 academic, government, industry, and non-profit organizations, and will now help support the RAMPT project as it works to create a domestic supply chain and specialized manufacturing technology vendors, which will be used by all government agencies, commercial space companies, and academic institutions.

“For decades, Auburn engineers have been instrumental in helping the U.S. achieve its space exploration goals. This new collaboration between NASA and our additive manufacturing researchers will play a major role in developing advanced rocket engines that will drive long-duration spaceflight, helping our nation achieve its bold vision for the future of space exploration,” said Christopher B. Roberts, the dean of the university’s College of Engineering.

Michael Ares, who works in Media Relations for Auburn University, told 3DPrint.com in an email that the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering is a leader in developing and implementing the kind of AM aerospace technology that Auburn and NASA have also been working on “behind the scenes,” which would allow astronauts on long-duration spaceflights to manufacture spare parts when needed.

“Think about how that would have been helpful on Apollo 13…” Ares told us.

GE Avionics is another Auburn partner that’s taken research jointly conducted with the university all the way to production. Additionally, Alabama’s Governor Kay Ivey announced last week that GE Aviation will invest $50 million to expand the additive manufacturing operation at its Auburn facility. All of this goes to show that when it comes to aerospace 3D printing, it seems like Alabama is the place to be right now.

“This contract is a giant leap towards making Alabama the ‘go to state’ for additive manufacturing. We look forward to growing our partnership with NASA, industry and academia as we support the development of our nation’s next rocket engines,” said Mike Ogles, Director of NASA programs in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering and the RAMPT Project Manager.

The announcement about the university’s new NASA contract was made at the biannual four-day meeting of ASTM International’s F42 Committee on Additive Manufacturing Technologies, which is hosted by the university at the Auburn Marriott Opelika Resort & Spa at Grand National in Opelika. Nima Shamsaei, the Director of NCAME, will lead Auburn’s team for the RAMPT project as the principal investigator.

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US Air Force Awards nScrypt Research Company Contract for 3D Printed Conformal Phased Array Antenna Project

Florida-based nScrypt, which manufactures industrial systems for micro-dispensing and 3D printing, is already seeing its technology used for military applications with the US Army. But now the US Air Force has jumped on the nScrypt bandwagon as well. Sciperio, nScrypt’s research and development think tank, was awarded a second phase contract by the Air Force for its 3D printed conformal phased array antennas project.

Sciperio specializes in cross-disciplinary solutions, and developed technology that was commercialized by nScrypt under the Mesoscopic Integrated Conformal Electronics (MICE) program with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). In 2016, the research group developed the first fully 3D printed phased array antenna for the Air Force, and has continued attempting to conform these antennae to complex surfaces, which would allow advanced communication technology to be added directly into an aircraft or vehicle body.

A phased antenna array uses both constructive and destructive interference to individually control each element’s signal phase and precisely “aim” the signal, instead of radiating it out in multiple directions. This feature is critical in terms of military applications, as it makes communications more secure and less likely to be intercepted by the enemy.

“Directly printing active phased array antennas on curved surfaces will provide unique capabilities to the DoD (Department of Defense), but the ultimate goal is to do this at a fraction of the cost of traditionally manufactured arrays,” said Casey Perkowski, Sciperio’s Lead Developer on the project. “This will allow the DoD to use these antennas in a more ubiquitous manner and this will translate to commercial applications.”

Not only is this technology important for the military, but it’s also vital to nScrypt’s vision of fully 3D, non-planar next generation electronics that will either conform to, or be embedded in, an object’s structure. At present, PCBs are placed into boxes and connected with unwieldy wiring harnesses; nScrypt is working toward a future where the PCB, box, and harness will be depleted so electronics can be smaller, less expensive, more lightweight, and integrated directly into the structure.

nScrypt’s Direct Digital Manufacturing platform, called the Factory in a Tool (FiT), enables the company’s vision of integrated electronics. The FiT has multiple tool heads, including nScrypt’s nFD for Material Extrusion, the SmartPump for Micro-Dispensing, nMill for micro-milling, and nPnP for pick and place of electronic components, which are placed on a high-precision (1 micron accuracy) linear motion gantry. Multiple cameras allow for automated inspection and computer vision routines, while a point laser height sensor maps surfaces.

All of these features add up to allow for successful conformal printing, or micro-dispensing, onto objects. Because everything is combined in one platform, manufacturers of complex structural electronics can create them with the press of a button.

nScrypt and Sciperio bring an additional advantage to the table in their projects for the DoD: high-precision motion and micro-dispensing excels. Each dimension in RF electronics is critical, and if a line is off by even the smallest fraction, the circuit’s performance is ruined, and so is that of the device with which it’s being used.

But the previously mentioned SmartPump offers picolitre volumetric flow control, while the nFD extruder provides precision deposition and the motion platform has 0.5 micron repeatability. This means that nScrypt’s unique platform can produce both conductive and dielectric features to high tolerances…ensuring successful RF circuits for the DoD.

[Image: nScrypt]

The goal of the Air Force project that nScrypt and Sciperio are working on is to produce an 8 x 8 element array on an ellipsoidal surface. The University of South Florida is a subcontractor on the project, as it previously worked with Sciperio back in 2016 to develop the first fully 3D printed phased array antenna, and will once again support antenna design, simulation, and testing.

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3D Printing News Briefs: January 19, 2019

Welcome to the first edition of 3D Printing News Briefs in 2019! We took a brief hiatus at the beginning of the new year, and now we’re back, bringing you the latest business, medical, and metal 3D printing news. First up, Sigma Labs has been awarded a new Test and Evaluation Program Contract, and Laser Lines is now a certified UK Stratasys training provider. Michigan’s Grand Valley State University, and a few of its partners, will be using Carbon 3D printing to make production-grade parts for medical devices. Cooksongold is launching new precious metal parameters for the EOS M 100 3D printer, and VBN Components has introduced a new metal 3D printing material.

Sigma Labs Receives Test and Evaluation Program Contract

This week, Sigma Labs, which develops and provides quality assurance software under the PrintRite3D brand, announced that it had been awarded a Test and Evaluation Program contract with a top additive manufacturing materials and service provider. This will be the company’s fifth customer to conduct testing and evaluations of its technology since September 2018, and Sigma Labs will install several PrintRite3D INSPECT 4.0 in-process quality assurance systems in the customer’s US and German facilities under the program. It will also support its customer in the program by providing engineering, hardware, metallurgical consulting and support services, software, and training.

“Sigma Labs is deeply committed to our In-Process Quality Assurance tools, supporting and moving forward with them,” said John Rice, the CEO of Sigma Labs. “I am confident that this initiative, which marks our fifth customer signed from diverse industries in the past four months, will validate our PrintRite3D technology in commercial-industrial serial manufacturing settings. We believe that going forward, AM technology will play an increasingly prominent role in the aerospace, medical, power generation/energy, automotive and tooling/general industries, all areas which are served by this customer.”

Laser Lines Announces New Stratasys Training Courses

Through its new 3D Printing Academy, UK-based total 3D printing solutions provider Laser Lines is now a certified provider of Stratasys training courses. The custom courses at the Academy for FDM and Polyjet systems are well-suited for new users, people in need of a refresher, or more experienced users, and include tips and tricks that the company’s certified trainers have personally developed. One-day and two-day courses are available at customer sites, or at the Laser Lines facility in Oxfordshire.

“The training courses are an extension of the advice and education we have been providing to customers for the past 20 years. With our experienced team able to share their knowledge and experience on both the FDM and Polyjet systems and materials, customers who are trained by us will get the value of some real life application examples,” said Richard Hoy, Business Development at Laser Lines.

“We want to ensure that our customers get what they need from our training so before booking, our Stratasys academy certified trainers can discuss exact requirements and advise both content and a suitable duration for the training course so that it meets their needs entirely.”

Exploring Applications in Medical Device Manufacturing

Enabled by Michigan state legislation, the Grand Rapids SmartZone Local Development Finance Authority has awarded a half-million-dollar grant that will be used to fund a 2.5-year collaborative program centered around cost and time barriers for medical devices entering the market. Together, Grand Valley State University and its study partners – certified contract manufacturer MediSurge and the university’s applied Medical Device Institute (aMDI) – will be using 3D printing from Carbon to create production-grade parts, out of medical-grade materials and tolerances, in an effort to accelerate medical device development, along with the component manufacturing cycle. A Carbon 3D printer has been installed in aMDI’s incubator space, where the team and over a dozen students and faculty from the university’s Seymour and Esther Padnos College of Engineering and Computing will work to determine the “tipping point” where 3D printing can become the top method, in terms of part number and complexity, to help lower startup costs and time to market, which could majorly disrupt existing manufacturing practices for medical devices.

“We are thrilled to be the first university in the Midwest to provide students with direct access to this type of innovative technology on campus. This novel 3D additive manufacturing technology, targeting medical grade materials, will soon be the new standard, and this study will be a launch pad for course content that is used in curriculum throughout the university,” said Brent M. Nowak, PhD, the Executive Director of aMDI.

New Precious Metal 3D Printing Parameters at Cooksongold

At this week’s Vicenzaoro jewelry show, Cooksongold, a precious metal expert and the UK’s largest one-stop shop for jewelry and watch makers, announced that it is continuing its partnership with EOS for industrial 3D printing, and will be launching new precious metal parameters for the EOS M 100 3D printer, which is replacing the system that was formerly called the PRECIOUS M 080. The EOS M 100 builds on the powder management process and qualities of the PRECIOUS M 080, and the new parameters make it possible for users to create beautiful designs, with cost-effective production, that are optimized for use on the new 3D printer.

“We are proud to continue our successful partnership with Cooksongold, which was already established 2012,” said Markus Brotsack, Partner Manager at EOS. “The EOS M 100 system increases productivity and ensure high-quality end parts as we know them. Based on our technology, EOS together with Cooksongold plans to develop processes for industrial precious metals applications too.”

VBN Components Introducing New Cemented Carbide

Drill bits in Vibenite 480; collaboration with Epiroc.

In 2017, Swedish company VBN Components introduced the world’s hardest steel, capable of 3D printing, in its Vibenite family. Now it’s launching a new 3D printing material: the patented hard metal Vibenite 480, which is a new type of cemented carbide. The alloy, which has a carbide content of ~65%, is heat, wear, and corrosion resistant, and based on metal powder produced through large scale industrial gas atomization, which lowers both the cost and environmental impact. What’s more, VBN Components believes that it is the only company in the world that is able to 3D print cemented carbides without using binder jetting. Because this new group of materials is a combination of the heat resistance of cemented carbides and the toughness of powder metallurgy high speed steels (PM-HSS), it’s been dubbed hybrid carbides.

“We have learned an enormous amount on how to 3D-print alloys with high carbide content and we see that there’s so much more to do within this area,” said Martin Nilsson, the CEO of VBN Components. “We have opened a new window of opportunity where a number of new materials can be invented.”

Early adopters who want to be among the first to try this new material will be invited by VBN Components to a web conference at a later date. If you’re interested in participating, email info@vbncomponents.com.

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Contour Crafting Will Develop Concrete 3D Printer for Disaster Relief, Thanks to DoD Contract

One of the very first methods of large-scale 3D printing that the world witnessed was the technology of Contour Crafting Corporation, which uses large but lightweight robotic 3D printers to quickly put down layers of building material in order to rapidly create entire buildings onsite in just days.

Last week, we learned that the US Department of Defense (DoD) had recently awarded California-based Contour Crafting a $3 million research and development contract, effective July 25th, 2018, in the large-scale, construction 3D printing domain. Contour Crafting will use this Rapid Innovation Fund (RIF) to build a concrete 3D printer for the purposes of Rapid Response Construction – quickly constructing buildings for disaster relief, an application that often makes use of 3D printing.

According to the company’s website, “The outcome of this funded R&D program is expected to be a technology which, among other applications, will effectively respond to disaster relief situations with expedient, safe and sustainable structures and buildings.”

The RIF was awarded to Contour Crafting based on its proposal, titled “Autonomous Construction Equipment and Sensing (ACES).” I assume this ACES is not to be mistaken for the US Army’s other ACES program, but as the location on the Federal Business Opportunities page is listed as CERL in Champaign, Illinois, one can’t be too sure.

Regardless, this contract award to Contour Crafting confirms that the DoD is interested in seeking outside help for its construction 3D printing goals, as opposed to just keeping things in-house…never a bad idea.

Speaking of construction 3D printing goals, Contour Crafting is on a mission to commercialize disruptive construction technologies, and this funding award from the DoD should definitely help the company on its way to achieving it.

In 2015, Dr. Behrokh Khoshnevis, who developed the company’s Contour Crafting technology at the University of Southern California and is its CEO and founder, predicted during an interview with 3DPrint.com that 3D printed homes would be widespread within five years. While the 3D printed housing sector is certainly hard at work, we are definitely not there yet. However, 3D printed construction technology does seem to be the perfect answer for smaller structures, like an army barracks and emergency housing, so it’s smart to focus on these while continuing to build up the technology until it’s ready.

While I did not learn too much more about the company’s newly awarded DoD contract, perhaps due to a non-disclosure agreement or something similar, Dr. Khoshnevis was kind enough to answer some questions for me in regards to Contour Crafting’s construction 3D printing technology, as well as the company’s plans for the future.

How does Contour Crafting’s technology compare to other construction 3D printing?

Contour Crafting Transformational Impact

“As the attached [sic] chart (published by an independent Dutch firm) shows, Contour Crafting is the pioneering technology in large scale 3D printing. Over the last 23 years we have developed a large set of related technologies in practically all related subfields including large-scale robotics, material delivery systems, and materials with numerous patented inventions in each subfield. We have conducted research in various application domains including building construction, infrastructure construction and planetary construction. In most fields of our activities no other 3D printing group or company is active so I have no basis for comparison in those fields.”

What do you think the future of 3D printing buildings will be like?

“I think construction by 3D printing will gradually gain popularity but we should not expect that this approach will become the dominant way of building construction. Frist, 3D printing can at best only build the building shell. There is much more to a building than just the shell, which encompasses about 1/3 of the building cost. Second, many buildings will continue to be built with stick frame, steel, etc. and 3D printing is not likely to make any of these alternative approaches obsolete.”

What kind of structures are ideal for 3D printing?

Dr. Behrokh Khoshnevis

“Given that so far the economic attractiveness of construction by 3D printing is still unproven, the only ideal application remains to be construction of buildings that have exotic features, primarily curved walls, which would be potentially more expensive to build by manual methods. In case of concrete printing, even curvatures are limited to 2.5D features, thus giving an upper hand to manual methods over 3d printing approach.”

What are the next steps for your company?

“CC Corp is currently pursuing both construction and non-construction application domains. The latter has the main advantage of not being subject to regulatory restrictions and the complex and potentially costly process of obtaining approval of regulatory authorities for conformance to building codes, which incidentally is different for different localities because of varying factors such as extent of seismic activities and climatic conditions.

“In the field of construction we are advancing more cautiously as we are exploring potential implementation problems and solutions. We are doing many experimentations in-house and are preparing for some field tests as well.

“We have maintained our interest in the field of planetary construction as our prior accomplishments in the field, which include two NASA international competition Grand Prizes, have been noteworthy. We are developing new technologies for in-situ material usage for construction of a variety of useful infrastructure elements such as landing pads, blast protection walls, shade walls, radiation shielding walls, hangars, and roads.”

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3D Printing News Briefs: August 10, 2018

We’ve got some business news to start things off with in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, followed by a little research and a really cool 3D printed costume. The Department of Defense has awarded a contract to Contour Crafting, and Sutrue is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Facebook has made the decision to ban blueprints for 3D printed guns, and a Siggraph paper takes an in-depth look into near-eye displays. Finally, several companies helped the non-profit organization Magic Wheelchair make a really cool 3D printed wheelchair costume for a big Star Wars fan.

Contour Crafting Receives Department of Defense Contract

One of the first methods of large-scale 3D printing, Contour Crafting, uses large but lightweight robotic 3D printers, which can quickly put down layers of building material to rapidly create entire buildings onsite in just days. The California-based corporation itself is on a mission to commercialize disruptive construction technologies, and we recently learned that the US Department of Defense (DoD) has awarded Contour Crafting a $3 million research and development contract to build a concrete 3D printer for the purposes of building construction for disaster relief.

According to the company’s website , “Effective 25 JUL 2018, the Department of Defense has awarded Contour Crafting Corporation with a Rapid Innovation Fund contract in the domain of large and construction scale 3D printing. The outcome of this funded R&D program is expected to be a technology which, among other applications, will effectively respond to disaster relief situations with expedient, safe and sustainable structures and buildings.”

This information confirms that the DoD is not putting all of its eggs into one basket, so to speak, and is seeking outside help for its construction 3D printing goals.

Sutrue Celebrates Ten Years

Medical device startup Sutrue first started working on a 3D printed suture stitching device to help prevent needle stick injuries back in 2014, and became the first company to successfully 3D print a suture device. But Sutrue’s story actually began back in August of 2008, when its founder Alex Berry was stuck at home with a broken ankle and watched a documentary that provided some insight into robotic suturing. In an effort to keep busy during his recovery, Berry, who had some basic CAD knowledge, got to work.

After moving to the UK, Berry officially started Sutrue in 2012, meeting some influential people along the way who helped him get closer to achieving his goal of creating a 3D printed suture device. The startup completed a £30,000 crowdfunding campaign in 2014, submitted another patent, developed a few mutually beneficial relationships with other companies, and secured further funding for continued device development. Now, Sutrue is celebrating the 10th anniversary of Berry’s initial idea.

The startup wrote in a post, “It’s been ten years of ups and downs, filled with much uncertainty particularly in the first five years in which Berry didn’t even know for sure that the device would work. He has maintained the progression of the device through having a healthy dose of insanity, extreme resourcefulness, and an inquiring and problem-solving mind. He’s gone against many societal norms to have created two working prototypes of his automated suturing device – the robotic and the handheld, but as the route to market becomes closer and closer, he’s glad to have fought against the odds to see the project through to completion.”

Facebook Bans 3D Printed Gun Blueprints

Gun with 3D printed parts. [Image: CNET]

There’s been an increased amount of conversation on the topic of 3D printed guns recently, after news broke of a settlement between the US State Department and Texas open source 3D printed gun designer Defense Distributed, run by Cody Wilson. The settlement states that Wilson and his non-profit organization can publish files, plans, and 3D drawings of guns in any form, and are also exempted from export restrictions; additionally, the government will be paying nearly $40,000 of Wilson’s legal fees. This means that people who weren’t legally able to purchase firearms before, such as felons and domestic abusers, can 3D print their own guns without serial numbers. As you can imagine, many are not happy with this decision. This week, Facebook, the world’s largest social network, said that it will ban any websites that host and share blueprints of 3D printed guns, though the designs have already been available online for years.

According to BuzzFeed News, a Facebook spokesperson said, “Sharing instructions on how to print firearms using 3D printers is not allowed under our Community Standards. In line with our policies, we are removing this content from Facebook.”

MSN reports that Facebook did not “immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the Ghost Gunner” 3D printed gun.

Siggraph Paper on Optical Design for Augmented Reality Near Eye Displays

This year’s annual conference on computer graphics, SIGGRAPH 2018, starts this Sunday, August 12th, in Vancouver. One of the papers published for the conference, titled “Steerable application-adaptive near eye displays,” discusses see-through near eye displays (NED), which are currently being used in the Hololens, among other things. According to the Stanford Computational Imaging Lab, most NEDs work by using a stereoscopic image pair to optically drive the visual system’s vergence state to “arbitrary distances,” but drives the focus (accommodation) state towards a fixed distance.

The technology is a bit of a long shot, due to people getting motion sickness or their eyes getting tired, but if we can get it to work, I bet every movie theatre in the world will employ it.

The abstract of the paper reads, “The design challenges of see-through near-eye displays can be mitigated by specializing an augmented reality device for a particular application. We present a novel optical design for augmented reality near-eye displays exploiting 3D stereolithography printing techniques to achieve similar characteristics to progressive prescription binoculars. We propose to manufacture inter-changeable optical components using 3D printing, leading to arbitrary shaped static projection screen surfaces that are adaptive to the targeted applications. We identify a computational optical design methodology to generate various optical components accordingly, leading to small compute and power demands. To this end, we introduce our augmented reality prototype with a moderate form-factor, large field of view. We have also presented that our prototype is promising high resolutions for a foveation technique using a moving lens in front of a projection system. We believe our display technique provides a gate-way to application-adaptive, easily replicable, customizable, and cost-effective near-eye display designs.”

Co-authors of the paper are NVIDIA Corporation‘s Kishore Rathinavel, Praneeth Chakravarthula, Kaan Akşit, Josef Spjut, Ben Boudaoud, Turner Whitted, David Luebke, and Henry Fuchs from UNC Chapel Hill.

3D Printed Star Wars Wheelchair Costume

Here’s something fun and heartwarming to kick off your weekend – non-profit organization Magic Wheelchair, which makes free, bespoke wheelchair costumes for kids, created a 3D printed Poe Dameron X-Wing Fighter wheelchair costume for a 13-year-old, wheelchair-bound Star Wars fan named Vedant Singhania to wear at last month’s Comic-Con International. Project partners included Pixologic, which used its ZBrush digital sculpting software to provide the design and modeling work, and Dangling Carrot Creative, which used the high print speeds of the Massivit 1800 3D printer to make 50 separate costume pieces in a little over two weeks. Massivit also donated 3D printing materials, and Monster City Studios assembled the large wheelchair costume.

“We connected with Magic Wheelchair because we knew our technology and modelling expertise could assist them with the fantastic work they are doing for children in wheelchairs,” said Pixologic’s 3D Product Development Manager Paul Gaboury. “After we designed the costume, Dangling Carrot Creative was the final piece to the puzzle. The company allowed us to 3D print life-size to help remove the need for molds or casting which saves substantial time and money.”

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Category: contracts