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Star Trek Technology Today?

Rapid prototyping techniques transfer to space applications

The principle of serendipity reigns supreme in engineering circles. Add a little touch of science fiction-inspired creativity and applications become far-reaching...

One of the companies beta-testing the Titan fused deposition modeling (FDM) system, made by Stratasys Inc., Eden Prairie, MN, found itself in a manufacturing pinch. A three-year-old table-top sander was being used to remove burrs from steel parts in the finishing step of production items. The sander’s belt runs along a series of pulleys that are constructed of cast aluminum. One of the pulleys had developed a crack, halting the sander as well as production. Rather than substituting a sander pulled away from another production area, or waiting days for an aluminum replacement part, engineers jury-rigged a substitute in under four hours. “I had a model of the pulley drawn up in CAD in less than an hour,” says Kirk Moswen, the manufacturer’s fabrication manager. “Then we built the part from polycarbonate on the Titan RP system; it took only 2 or 3 hours to build it.” A month afterwards, Moswen comments, “Now if anyone asks about the durability of [these] RP parts…I take them over to the sanding station and tell them the story. You can see the sparks flying off the sander and hear it grinding away—it really opens some eyes. I have an aluminum replacement pulley now, but I’m in no hurry to install it. With the way this one has performed, I want to see how long it lasts!”

Engineers at NASA appear to be keeping their ears to the ground. The space agency has been researching the placement of similar units onboard the International Space Station, with the intent to reduce (pardon) astronomical shipping costs for replacement parts. According to a recently published white paper, initial experimentation with solid free-form fabrication (SFF) in reduced gravity has successfully produced various test parts; future space shuttle tests are in the works. 

Add a little nano-technology and Star Trek’s replicator may not be long in the offing.

—SG

For more information:

Circle 290—Stratasys Inc, or connect directly to their website via the Online Reader Service Program at www.RSLeads.com/?111df-290