Audi Toolmaking used Volkswagen Group’s 3D printing tech to create a 1:2 scale 3D printed replica of a Grand Prix racing car, Auto Union Type C, made by Auto Union in 1936. Even with it’s scaled down size the Silver arrow model can easily seat a driver’.
In order to demonstrate the potential of metal printing technology in the production of complex components Audi Toolmaking is seeking ways of implementing metallic 3D printing and sand-printing into the production of vehicles.
The company used Selective laser sintering process to produce all the metallic parts of the scaled down Auto Union Type C-Silver Arrow model. The process allows to produce components of intricate geometries, which cannot be easily produced by conventional methods. Components printed using this technique are also denser than those made using die casting or hot forming. At the moment, the company’s metal printing process can be used to create shapes and objects up to 240 mm long and 200 mm high.
“We are pushing forward with new manufacturing technologies at Audi Toolmaking and at the Volkswagen Group, Together with partners in the area of research, we are constantly exploring the boundaries of new processes. One of our goals is to apply metal 3D printers in series production.”said Prof. Dr. Hubert Waltl, Audi’s Board of Management Member for Production and Head of Toolmaking at the Volkswagen Group.
Audi is not the first to experiment with the 3D printing technology, thoughkkkk. Earlier this year we saw the 3D Printed iconic Shelby Cobra by Oak Ridge National Laboratory and also the world’s first 3D printed car(as claimed), ‘Strati live’ made by Local Motors(also in collaboration with Oak Ridge National Laboratory). The Shelby and Strati live are crafted out of carbon-fiber reinforced plastic, Unlike the
The new 3d printing tech is sure a game changer due to its capability to produce highly detailed components. This will create a new horizon of possibilities on the designing front, the intricate will get more complex and the smooth will go smoother.