Please create an account to participate in the Slashdot moderation system

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×
Transportation Build

3D-Printed Car Takes Its First Test Drive 132

Posted by samzenpus from the print-and-drive dept.
An anonymous reader points out this advancement in 3D printing. This week, at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago, Arizona-based automobile manufacturer Local Motors stole the show. Over the six day span of the IMTS, the company managed to 3D print and assemble an entire automobile, called the "Strati," live in front of spectators. Although the Strati is not the first ever car to be 3D printed, the advancements made by Local Motors with help from Cincinnati Inc, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, have produced a vehicle in days rather than months.
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.

3D-Printed Car Takes Its First Test Drive More

3D-Printed Car Takes Its First Test Drive

Comments Filter:

  • it's means it is (Score:5, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:41PM (#47904129)

    Nobody 3D printed an entire car here. Just a stupid body shell, it's obvious the actual car, you know, the chassis, motor, tires, the *real* stuff, was made in an old Luddite factory.

    Idiots.

    • Re:it's means it is (Score:5, Insightful)

      by istartedi ( 132515 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:51PM (#47904171) Journal

      I figured as much; but don't knock that. Talk to anybody who has wrecked the plastic on their sport motorcycle. If you could print that stuff at a reasonable price, that wold be HUGE.

      • Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)

        by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @06:04PM (#47904243)
        Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • You can already 3D print ABS plastic.

        • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

          by Bill, Shooter of Bul ( 629286 )

          No one said you couldn't. But no one has previous printed such a large piece, so precise, and so fast. Its an engineering milestone, not the discovery of radioactivity.

          If todays geeks were alive to see the first model t the'd be bitching about how much better other cars were, and how it was nothing new. The new-ness is how it was made and how cheaply it was made.

          • Re:it's means it is (Score:5, Insightful)

            by Dutch Gun ( 899105 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @08:39PM (#47904885)

            I think people are just getting a little tired of the 3D printing hype. Yes, it's a cool emerging technology, but the sensationalism of these headlines and articles are a little grating at this point.

            Calling it a "3D printed car" is not exactly lying, but it borders on disengenuous, seeing that the guts of the car are, of course, still manufactured the traditional way. It's apparently the body and frame that were printed, from what I can tell. Seriously, would that have been so damn hard to mention in the summary or the article? Oh, but that sounds a lot less impressive, doesn't it...

            It was stated in the article that the car had 40 parts. I'm pretty sure they meant there were 40 printed parts, because there's no way in fuck you can build a car in 40 parts, unless you're conveniently counting the engine and frame as a single "part". Or maybe they're just counting each pre-packaged assembly as a "part".

            I don't think people would complain quite as much if there was any real semblance of critical reporting here - less hype and more tech.

            • I was tired of it last year because I saw that overhyping right away. I've been following 3D printing since it was called the "Santa Claus Machine" by Don Lancaster in the 1980s.

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) *

              This is an interesting development because it shows that 3D printed parts are viable for use in a car. They have come a long way already from the early days of low quality and high fragility.

              Eventually it's inevitable that you will be able to print a large part of a car. Printers will improve and use more materials, and companies will offer chassis with the motors and battery pack fitted ready for a custom body. Lawsuits will start to fly over copyright infringement. In fact, I saw on TV that one Japanese m

          • Don't tell that to Stratasys, 3D Systems or any of the other commercial 3D printer vendors

            Stratasys sell printers that do 1000x800x500mm and 914x610x914mm
            They can print in high impact ABS

            VoxelJet have one that does 4x2x1m

            Just because a Makerbot can't do it, doesn't mean commercial products can't.

            • Can they print a car body as quickly as the company did in the article? Have they?

              If not, then that's the point.
              If they have, then well the story sucks as much as everyone says it does.

              Step back from the myopic meaningless look at the details, and see how the small dots form the larger picture.

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by mjwx ( 966435 )

        I figured as much; but don't knock that. Talk to anybody who has wrecked the plastic on their sport motorcycle. If you could print that stuff at a reasonable price, that wold be HUGE.

        Not just motorbikes. Today I noticed another scratch on my quarter panel (Perth, this is why we cant have nice things). If I knew I could replace the thing for less than $100 I wouldn't care so much (then again, the people who think it's OK to bang their door carelessly against my car might become even more reckless).

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) *

          If I find a new dent when returning to my car I usually just put a note on the windscreen of the car next to me with my contact details and a brief explanation that it appears they damaged my car. I ask that they contract me within a few days to get it fixed, or I can go through their insurance (you can look up any vehicles insurance details for free on the MID database in the UK). It's about 50/50 if they just offer some cash or deny it, and in the latter case I just let it go if the damage is minor. If th

          • My dashcam can be triggered on motion. I don't use this feature, I just let it record all of my driving.

            That should dramatically cut the power used by the camera when it isn't recording.

            I'm about to get a 2nd one that will be rear facing (and then maybe left/right facing, I need to find a model that doesn't come with a screen, so it would be smaller).

            I've already used the threat of the dash cam to get some guy and a cop off my ass (he said I hit his car with my door, but I hadn't even been on the parking l

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by mjwx ( 966435 )

            I wish someone would invent a CCTV system for cars that was low power enough to run while parked. It would only need to record when an accelerometer detects that the car was bumped.

            They have (Australian taxi's have them installed recording 360 degree views) but they aren't cheap. Even to get an ADR (Australian Design Rules) approved dashcam it's near enough to A$500. The problem is you need a lot of cameras to reliably get the entire side of your car and some cars paint is so soft, it wont even set off th

      • You can get plain white plastic fairings etc cheap enough, it's all the paint/branding that makes manufacturers ones so expensive. And you'd still have that problem if you printed them yourself at home.

    • Local Motors and nothing associated with it are Luddite.

      • Um, bad post. I meant that neither Local Motors nor anything associated with it are Luddite.

        Now let me reboot this frikin N7. Stupid touch problems.

        • Now let me reboot this frikin N7

          Was it 3D printed?

        • ...neither Local Motors nor anything associated with it are Luddite...

          Since you're in correction mode, you may be interested to know that your post should have read: "...neither Local Motors nor anything associated with it is Luddite". The words "neither" and "anything" are singular pronouns.

          I'm a part-time grammar Nazi, and sometimes I can't restrain myself; please excuse my pedantic impulse.

    • What they could have done though is make the shell unique... like maybe trying out a dempled shall ala mythbusters

      http://www.discovery.com/tv-sh... [discovery.com]

      No 3d printing for such experimentation is aprobbaly a best use for the method.

    • is low-tech "luddite". Got it.

    • Yeah, "3D-Printed Car Takes It Is First Test Drive."

      See also:
      http://youtu.be/8Gv0H-vPoDc?t=... [youtu.be]

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by rioki ( 1328185 )

      In addition, what would have been the time and effort if that exact shell was not printed but molded or milled? 3D printing has a few useful applications, where you can't mill or mold the shape efficiently, but that car's shell could have been easily molded in a fraction of the time (including making the molds). One of the reasons why 3D printing has not picked up in manufacturing is because it is inefficient BS most of the time. (Prototyping on the other hand is a different story.)

  • It's First Test Drive (Score:4, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:42PM (#47904131)

    It's First Test Drive

    Sigh.

  • And don't forget we're still in the infancy of this technology.

    With any luck, we'll be printing autos overnight before my youngest is eligible for male teenage insurance premiums.

    • And don't forget we're still in the infancy of this technology.

      How long does an "infancy" last? 3D printing has been around since the '80s.

  • Really? (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Including the mechanics - engine and gearbox etc.? Can't tell from the article

  • Does it drive? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Iamthecheese ( 1264298 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:50PM (#47904169)
    No, "does it drive" is well down the list of questions I would ask. I want to know whether all the parts were printed, material costs, labor costs, whether it's street legal, safety, durability and/or ease of repair... In short I want to know whether there's a logical rational to saying anything but "meh". Considering they dodged every one of those questions the answers are probably down Meh road, past Slashvertisement junction, left at Hype street and first notachanceinhell on your left.

    • "Is it street legal" is probably one of the last questions I would ask.

      No, scratch that. I don't care if it's street legal. I just want to know if it's got two cup holders and decent sound system. And as a long-time Burnout Paradise player, I want to know how much boost it has and how well it drifts around turns.

      • "Is it street legal" is probably one of the last questions I would ask.

        No, scratch that. I don't care if it's street legal. I just want to know if it's got two cup holders and decent sound system. And as a long-time Burnout Paradise player, I want to know how much boost it has and how well it drifts around turns.

        Per TFA (or at least an FA, I've read about this from sources), it has a top speed of 40 mph. Unless they put it on intentionally skinny tires, a la the Subaru BR-Z, you're probably not going to be doing a whole lot of drifting.

    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • Cheaters (Score:5, Interesting)

    by viperidaenz ( 2515578 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:52PM (#47904183)

    They made the car extra small to print it quicker.

    Can someone tell me why the roll bar is significantly below the heads of both people sitting inside? What's the point? So you're slightly less dead when the car rolls over?

    They forgot the front roll bar too, around the windscreen. It's just a piece of glass or plastic.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      They made the car extra small to print it quicker.

      Can someone tell me why the roll bar is significantly below the heads of both people sitting inside? What's the point? So you're slightly less dead when the car rolls over?

      They forgot the front roll bar too, around the windscreen. It's just a piece of glass or plastic.

      Kind of like how the ricers put rear spoilers on front wheel drive cars?

      If you want to get on the idiocy of motorvehicles, I can go on about how the sound of a Harley engine makes my skin crawl and people who purposefully keep their Hogs running like shit to sound "cool" or "badass" should be crucified on a camshaft after being flogged by chains and offered as pathetic sacrifices to the internal combustion engine gods.

      • A rear spoiler on a front wheel drive car can help.
        Most cars experience lift at the rear, due to the vacuum created as the body shape moves downwards at the rear.
        It doesn't matter if you're in a front, rear or all wheel drive car, if the back wheel lose traction, it's bad news.

        But you don't need to worry about that if you're driving on the high way, since you're not going fast enough to lift the rear off the road, or making sharp, high speed turns. So the ricer spoilers do nothing but increase drag, lower t

        • A rear spoiler on a front wheel drive car can help.

          It's a wing, not a spoiler. And no, I don't care what Wikipedia says, I prefer to rely on the expertise of old guys who have been flying or racing cars, respectively, for the better part of a century.

          In fairness, considering that the purpose of an aeronautical spoiler is to "reduce lift," I can see why the terms get confused.

          Crap like this is why English is such a hard language to learn. /rant

    • Obviously... (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      To keep the organs intact. No doubt the car has a 3d printer built in to put the pink dot on your driver's license as well.

      Take that 3d printing yuppie consumer scum! You're organ donors for your mass producing corporate overlords! :-D

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Stripe7 ( 571267 )
      I am interested in knowing if the design factors in the effect of using the 3D printed panels in the crumple zones.Will the 3D printed panels have the same effect as normal panels in an accident, in terms of energy absorption?

  • Entire car? (Score:3)

    by ArcadeMan ( 2766669 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @05:56PM (#47904201)

    the company managed to 3D print, and assemble an entire automobile

    When you buy an "entire car", they don't sell you an empty shell.

  • Grammar! (Score:2)

    by Anonymous Coward

    You mean "its" and not "it's" first test drive, don't you?

    • The inappropriate apostrophe is one of the last freedoms we have. If you try to take it away, you'll have to wrest it from my cold, dead finger's.

  • What sort of engine (Score:4, Insightful)

    by rossdee ( 243626 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @06:00PM (#47904217)

    What sort of engine can you print with a 3d printer?

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by jeti ( 105266 )
      You could probably print a pneumatic engine. But this car uses electric motors that were not printed.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Khyber ( 864651 )

      NASA successfully printed and tested some high-stress components for their rockets, so I'd assume one might be able to make a reasonably powerful engine if one had access to the same grade of technology.

      • No, that "printing" that NASA did was melting metal powder with a laser to make injector for a rocket engine. Nothing like the melting plastic which was done here, and I can't believe person who wrote that article claimed they printed a car.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by Khyber ( 864651 )

          Sintering, plastic welding, same difference. Played with both, given proper forming materials you can 3D print and CNC mill a finalized piece. It's how I make PCB and housing for my LED panels.

          • Very different things, melting some plastic and making a silly claim of "making a car" is utter bullshit. Sintering jet engine or rocket engine parts in a different league altogether.

      • Probably not a high performance or engine.
        Pretty hard to 3D print metal that's as strong as forged steel.

        You could probably 3D print a block or head, but not a piston, conrod or crankshaft.

      • IIRC they were laser sintering [extremetech.com] some exhaust nozzles. So yes, it is a technology that can be added to our bag of Homo Industrialis tricks. No, it's not going to replace much in the manufacturing sector anytime soon.

    • A plastic one.
    • Engines should print without much fuss at all. 3D printing with various metals is already common enough. We are seeing a lot of resistance to such articles simply because people are very much in fear of this new technology. We are about to see a hell for leather change in everything we think and believe. 3D printing, robotics and computing are gaining speed as is medical technology. When you see emotional primitives acting out much like the terrorists in the Arab world a great deal of it h

  • Yes! (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 14, 2014 @06:02PM (#47904233)

    I would pirate a car!

  • Grammar (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward

    3D-Printed Car Takes It's First Test Drive

    should be

    3D-Printed Car Takes Its First Test Drive

    "It's" is a contraction for "It is". "Its" is a possessive pronoun. Please correct your mistake.

  • Benefits/Effects (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 14, 2014 @06:23PM (#47904333)

    I believe some real benefits of this would be the ability to customize cars and add after market parts. It would make, at least the body work, on a damaged car possibly much cheaper and faster. Another benefit would be replacing parts on cars that are no longer being produced.

    On the effects side this could greatly impact parts suppliers with the reduction of workers since only designers would be needed long term. It would also really change factories if a large percentage of the parts could be printed on site. Obviously some things like engines and electronics are far off, but body panels, plastic parts, etc could be done which would reduce the need for transportation of parts to the assembly site and reduce the complexity of the logistics chain for the factory.

    Overall if/when it works it will be a good incremental improvement to the entire supply chain of a modern automobile. I just think this article was a bit forward leaning in the title, but showing that many parts of a modern car could be made this way is a great leap forward, if it works on an industrial scale.

    • " It would make, at least the body work, on a damaged car possibly much cheaper and faster"

      And to think I got banned from Fark for daring to suggest that!

  • The vehicle which weighed about half of what a typical automobile would weigh, was as strong as steel.

    I'm sorry, but I don't believe that. Run it into a transport truck or a dump truck, and guess who will win.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AC-x ( 735297 )

      Is it the same one who would win if you ran a "typical automobile" into a transport truck or a dump truck?

  • I wish tech writers were more honest (Score:5, Informative)

    by MpVpRb ( 1423381 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @06:54PM (#47904473)

    Yes, it's a cool demo..congratulations to a bunch of cool engineers

    No, it's not a 3D printed car

    At best, it's a crudely 3D printed body shell over traditionally made parts

    There is no 3D printing tech available now that can print a ball bearing..or gears..or springs..or a motor

  • And it looks abysmal too (Score:4, Insightful)

    by DrXym ( 126579 ) on Sunday September 14, 2014 @06:57PM (#47904481)
    Most extruded plastic 3D printers look bad, but this particular one looks terrible. The flaws are big enough to see in the promo video in SD. It's like a lumpy coil pot.

    As usual 3D printing is being used as an excuse for free publicity. Most of the parts could have been injection moulded with far greater quality & accuracy in far less time, assuming plastic was the best material to make them with in the first place.

    • Exactly. I hate seeing 3D printing touted as a mass production technique when in fact it's terrible for that. Traditional mass production methods like injection molding, vacuum forming, milling, etc. are intrinsically better in most cases and will remain so for the foreseeable future.

      3D printing is great for prototyping and very short production runs, not for mass production.
    • It does look bad, However, it is not possible to make an injection molded car body in far less time when you consider the cost and time of the tooling required. Tooling design and manufacture for a car body this size would take on the order of 12 months. The machines required to manufacture a tool this size are many millions of dollars as well as the cost of the molding machine required to mold a part that size. Once you have the tools you can spit out many high quality parts very quickly at a low price per

  • Sorry -- I'm not really into 3D printing.

  • I was expecting to see what the hype was all about and all I saw was a bunch of marketing distractions showing the printing a shell of a very small go-cart, and later two guys riding that go-cart.
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

Slashdot Top Deals

It is easier to write an incorrect program than understand a correct one.

Close