Marines take 3D printed UAVs from the lab to the field

Additive manufacturing is a technology the U.S. military has been pursuing for some time: “Imagine being in a forward deployed environment, and just like Amazon, you can ‘order’ the weapons and equipment you need for the next day’s mission from an entire catalog of possible solutions,” says Capt. Chris J. Wood, who oversees innovation efforts at the Marine Corps’ installations and logistics branch. “These solutions can all be upgraded literally overnight, in order to integrate new components or adapt to new requirements.”

In the coming weeks the service will deploy a tiny unmanned aircraft dubbed the “Nibbler,” which would become the first 3D printed drone used in combat operations by conventional forces. Marines see it as just the beginning of a new way of equipping and supplying forces in the field. The Nibbler will be used for surveillance missions, along with several other 3D printed unmanned aircraft that the Marines are still developing, Wood added. “We can have a backpack-able fixed wing UAS for long endurance ISR. We can have a small quadcopter for building clearing operations,” he said. “We will forward deploy these capabilities into a combat zone as soon as possible.”

(Read more)

Achieving ship's mission flexibility through designing, printing and operating unmanned systems with additive manufacturing and delayed differentiation

The Design, Print and Operate (DPO) Concept Of Operations (CONOPS) is proposed in this thesis as a new means of equipping ships with the appropriate capabilities. A companion concept of delayed differentiation is also introduced. In coupling the two concepts, Additive Manufacturing (AM) of capabilities in-situ becomes a possibility through the equipping of operational units with three building blocks: additive manufacturing systems and their raw materials, commercial off-the-shelf items and field programmable gate arrays.

A concept of operations on uses of additive manufacturing was developed to illustrate the flexibility that the nexus of DPO CONOPS and delayed differentiation can engender. A tactical UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) was used as an illustration to contextualize the concept of operations to enhance the littoral combat ship's survivability when operating in the littorals. Assessments were then made on the feasibility of DPO CONOPS for shipboard uses. A tactical UAV was used as it was assessed to be operationally relevant and significant. Analytical models that could be iterated to achieve the specific-to-mission requirements were developed to analyze and assess the implementation approach. The models focused on the UAV's reliability in fulfilling the mission as well as the build-time of the UAV.

Link to download:

https://calhoun.nps.edu/handle/10945/50484

Iran shows off new UAV base

According with Arutz Sheva, Iran has revealed a previously unseen Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) base in a new video released today, coming amid rising tensions with Washington.

The clip shows a long line of UAVs parked on the tarmac at an undisclosed air base. Iran is estimated to have considerable UAV capabilities, but today is the first time it has ever revealed its UAV's base.

¿More reasons to worry? OK: Tensions have been rising between the Islamic Republic and Washington ever since President Trump instituted new sanctions in July over its ballistic missile program, but Iran also announced yesterday that it was testing its new Bavar-373 air defense system, which it claims rivals the Russian S-300.

¿Can 3D Printing get married with traditional technologies?

More and more, Additive Manufacturing is now seen as a complementary technology, as witnessed by the increased in hybrid printers that combine 3D Printing and CNC machining.

Now, Stratasys, one of the leading players in the 3D printing industry, is sharing some of that expertise via a new whitepaper titled "How Additive and Traditional Manufacturing Mix".

The whitepaper is free to download from 3dprint.com after you fill out a brief form, by clicking here: https://3dprint.com/stratasys-how-additive-and-traditional-manufacturing-mix/.

Introduction to Additive Manufacturing for Composites

Additively manufactured composites offer advantages that include greater design flexibility, decreased costs and production efficiency. In this e-book, you’ll learn more about:

• Reinforced thermoplastics for high-performance applications
• Multi-axis motion platforms for design optimization
• Lightweight, agile mold tooling capabilities
• Sacrificial tooling for easier production of hollow composites
• Autoclave cure- and high-temperature-capable materials

Download this FREE e-book to learn how additive manufacturing enables a new era of lightweight structures with degrees of geometric complexity, part consolidation, and design optimization not previously possible.

CNC vs 3D Printing: ¿What is the right choice?

Click on the image to discover the right answer...

Low-cost approaches to UAV design using Additive Manufacturing

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) platforms are of major interest to Defense, Government, and commercial industries. The ability to remotely control an aerial vehicle capable of surveillance, offensive and defensive maneuvering, reconnaissance, or numerous other applications without the need to put a human life in jeopardy is a major attraction to their use. Furthermore, there exists opportunities to make these airborne vehicles largely autonomous, further reducing the need for even remote human operators. However, for all of the significant advantages of UAVs, there is a significant negative: the cost of manufacture, and the cost of design. Due in part to the substantial amount of complex electronic equipment on board, UAVs become not only a design of aeronautics, but an experiment in energy conservation through optimization. A limited range of UAV power becomes a limiting factor of UAV application. The challenge becomes to optimize the size, weight, and aerodynamics of the UAV based on the application. 

(Read More)