The Strati- World’s first 3D printed electric car printed live and test driven succesfully
After electronics became a common utility, the world is after revolutionizing how the products are manufactured. 3D printing is setting its empire very quickly, even faster than the world had expected it a few years ago.
As a huge leap towards the future of 3D printing, Local Motors has successfully printed and test driven world’s first 3D printed electric car,the Strati, at Chicago’s McCormick Place. The occasion was the International Manufacturing Technology Show.
The Strati car was printed in just six days before the show. Local Motors, in collaboration with Ork Ridge Nation Laboratory and Cincinnati Incorporated. Local Motors was provided with a BAAM (Big Area Additive Manufacturing Machine) machine by Cincinnati Inc., which is faster than the usual printers. The machine can process 40 pounds of material per hour. As compared to the cars we presently drive, which usually have about 20,000 parts, this 3D printed car had only 40 parts like engine, windshield, lights etc.
Craig Blue, Director, Advanced Manufacturing Program and Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL comments about the opportunity:
This project represents the unique opportunity DOE’s National Laboratory System offers to the industry, to collaborate in an open environment to deliver fast, innovative, manufacturing solutions said these partnerships are pushing the envelope on emerging technologies, such as large scale additive manufacturing, and accelerating the growth of manufacturing in the United States.
The entire car comprise of carbon fiber plastic. The maximum speed of the car is 40 mph with a range of 120 mph in one full charge. The initial cost starts at $18,000 and could easily go beyond a cost of $30,000.
Again, as an ecological advantage, when it comes to discarding an old car, most of the material could be recycled to print a new car.
Jay Rogers from Local Motors says:
Because you can literally print the car any way you want, if your family goes from two people to three–with a child, you trade in and recycle the center part of your car and all the components that outfit the family. Whatever you can imagine is what this process can entail.
Local Motors could be expected to start production of 3D printed cars in 2015. It’s sure that 3D printing is going to revolutionize the future like the Internet brought to the world, like the electronic advancements did, or like the artificial intelligence would do with our future. There doesn’t seem to be any end to where the human kinds mind would stop exploring the prospects of technology and science.
