Made In Space Archinaut: 3D Print Large Structures in Space

[DocM]

If it works its revolutionary, and their maker at Lowes home improvement stores is going to blow peoples minds.

http://tinyurl.com/q29rxeb

Made In Space Archinaut to 3D Print Large Structures in Space

"The Archinaut project will see Made In Space work with Northrop Grumman and Oceaneering Space Systems to create the first system for 3D printing and assembling large structures in space, without direct, manual intervention on the part of an astronaut.

Together with Northrop Grumman and Oceaneering Space Systems, the company will work to first perform technology demonstrations as a part of their Phase I program, before, ultimately, aiming for 3D printing and assembling unlaunchable structures in space, including large-scale antennas and even base stations."

Earlier this year, Made In Space was able to demonstrate that the company was capable of 3D printing in a vacuum, providing them with the evidence needed to go ahead and partner with NanoRacks to 3D print CubeSats aboard the International Space Station with their new Lowe’s Additive Manufacturing Facility, to be launched in the first half of 2016.  With the Archinaut, they will now be able to move beyond the small-scale CubeSats and 3D print much larger, more complex structures.  Andrew Rush, President of Made In Space, said of the news, “Archinaut is being designed from the ground up to be a truly cross-cutting technology, providing entirely new space capabilities for NASA and other government missions as well as both pre-existing commercial satellite manufacturers and emerging commercial space platforms.”

Together with Northrop Grumman and Oceaneering Space Systems, the company will work to first perform technology demonstrations as a part of their Phase I program, before, ultimately, aiming for 3D printing and assembling unlaunchable structures in space, including large-scale antennas and even base stations. Made In Space will, naturally, be providing their space-based 3D printing expertise, while Northrop Grumman will lend its knowledge around electronic interfaces and external thermal control analysis and Oceaneering Space Systems  will go to work on designing and constructing the Archinaut’s manipulator arm.

Mike Snyder, Co-Founder and Chief Engineer for Made In Space, comments, “In addition to transforming the current state-of-the-art for space manufacturing, the development of the Archinaut capability will be a great opportunity for Made In Space to collaborate with established space companies which possess complimentary resources and proven expertise.”

Jason Dunn, Co-Founder and CTO of Made In Space, adds, “Archinaut is a major milestone on the roadmap for bringing large scale manufacturing to space. This announcement is a result of the technology development that has been underway since our company’s inception and sets the stage for what is to come in both the public and private sectors.”
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[Beittil]

Man, these guys sure will have a bright future ahead of them! Demand is going to be on the rise BIG time in the (near) future for such capabilities.

[BetaguyGZT]

And with OldSpace backing them up, it's sure to get the support downhill and uphill that they need to succeed.

Looking forward to see how this turns out. No reason for it not to work. Just needs to feeder materials for the 3D Printer, the power supplies, and someone on the end to catch. And someplace to put whatever it cranks out. The item(s) can be fed into the device directly from the ground, too. They're just models/programs, really.

Yeah ... I see big applications for this technology.

[DocM]

I forgot to mention that the Made in Space prototype flew to ISS in Dragon CRS-4, where it was used to make parts and tools using 3D plans sent up from NASA. It worked so well the full unit will be regular equipment. For many items just periodically send up what raw print stocks are used and upload the design they need at the moment.

The Apollo 13 guys would be SO envious.

[Beittil]

Plus, I believe MIS are also working on techniques to grind previously printed objects back into the raw base product for reuse.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

I think the key statement, is like Doc said..."if it works". The idea is sound, they have quality collaboration and had a test setup to test the basics on the ISS which was this polymer unit...

http://www.madeinspace.us/projects/

used in this, on the ISS...

NASA

The ISS has a durable tool set for use in and outside the ISS. This was just a technology proving demonstration and 25 items were printed, including face plates, for testing. (obviously, we would not use a polymer screwdriver, outside the ISS on a seized fastener)

Three weeks ago, the Lowes collaboration for the first commercial printer, came out in articles with a video, which stated it was the next step, polymer still, to produce what ever parts that it could and to produce "licenced" tools...the commercial aspect, and that it would be also available in a consumer variant. I had this article in the ISS thread,page 22, and thought it was neat for the commercial aspect. The unit going to the ISS is this one...

http://www.madeinspace.us/projects/

Notice the rack mounting, probably will be mounted separately, with an evac system for particulates..we will soon see...

No mention of the regrinder going anywhere yet...

http://www.madeinspace.us/projects/

Reading this statement from them, a vision is present.....but one must be careful of sensationalism...(web site video's a bit much)
http://www.madeinspace.us/nasa-selects-made-in-space-proposal-for-next-generation-space-manufacturing-program/

The "permanent" unit has been tested on the "vomit comet"...on land in a vacuum, and hopefully while it was on the "comet", it was tested in a vacuum as well, probably done, just have not noticed it in print. (article is on page 23 ISS thread)

This is their web site....
http://www.madeinspace.us/

It may be that I thought that some of their video's were a little over the top, considering the stage that they are at...but I suppose some enthusiasm is warranted. There are 100's of companies doing wild stuff on land as we type...

China unveils the world’s largest 3-D printed structure

Photo by Beijing Design Week.

 

VULCAN, the world’s largest 3-D printed architectural structure, was recently unveiled during Beijing Design Week 2015.

The pavilion, which is displayed in Beijing’s Parkview Green was constructed from 1,023 individually printed 3-D units and measures 26.5 feet in length and 9.5 feet in height, according to Inhabitat. Twenty large-scale 3-D printers were used to complete the units that assemble the pavilion, as described on the site Designboom. The white undulating lattice structure resembles a volcano, hence the name Vulcan, the Latin term for volcano. Silkworm cocoons inspired the architects behind the design, Yu Lei and Xu Feng of the Laboratory for Creative Design.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/china-unveils-worlds-largest-3d-printer/

The EBAM 300 Series Produces the Largest 3D Printed Metal Parts & Prototypes in the Additive Manufacturing Market 

With a maximum work envelope of 19' x 4' x 4' x 8’ (L x W x H x D, or round parts up to 96” diameter), the EBAM 300 Series by Sciaky offers the largest build platform of any metal 3d printer commercially available.

Designed to additively manufacture large-scale parts and prototypes from high-value metals like titanium, tantalum, Inconel, niobium, and other alloys, the EBAM 300 is the only 3D printer on the market that has produced a metal structure exceeding 10 feet in length. 

Beyond size, the EBAM 300 is also one of the fastest industrial 3D printers commercially available with a deposition rate ranging from 7 to 20 lbs. per hour. It produced a 10-foot-long titanium aircraft structure in 48 hours at a rate of approximately 15 lbs. of metal per hour. In general, forgings that used to take 6-12 months to complete can be completed in 2 days with the EBAM 300.

http://www.sciaky.com/largest-metal-3d-printer-available

World's largest delta 3D printer could build entire houses out of mud or clay 

Italian engineering company WASP, which manufactures 3D printers in all sizes, has recently been focused on taking after its namesake and building (human-sized) shelters of its own. Last year, the company showcased a 4.5 m (15 ft) tall printer that could work with simple but highly versatile materials such as mud, clay or natural fibers. Now, the company has gone even bigger with a record-breaking 12 m (40 ft) tall printer called the Big Delta.

 http://www.gizmag.com/wasp-big-delta-3d-printer-clay-housing/39414/

Talk: The AMAZE Project: Bringing 3D Printing into the metal age

About the talk " The AMAZE Project: Bringing 3D Printing into the metal age" by Andrea Amaldi, the European Space Agency (ESA)

3D printing is building a solid object from a series of layers, each one printed on top of the last – also known as additive manufacturing. 3D printing is considered to be the third industrial revolution among manufacturers. ESA and the European Commission have launched a project to perfect the printing of space-quality metal components: the AMAZE project. One of the main aims of the AMAZE project is to put the first 3D metal printer on the International Space Station allowing astronauts to produce tools and new structures on demand. 3D printing is also going to be applied in the Metallurgy Europe Programme whereby ESA has joined forces with other leading research institutions and over 180 European companies in a billion-euro programme to develop new types of metals and manufacturing techniques for this century. Metal elements can be combined and mixed in an infinite number of ways to discover new materials such as metallic compounds, alloys, composites, superconductors and semiconductors. Andrea Amaldi is an aeronautical engineer working at the Space Research and Technology Centre of the European Space Agency (ESA/ESTEC) in Noordwijk, the Netherlands. He works on materials & energy related projects within the Strategic & Emerging Technology Team.

http://ufm.dk/en/newsroom/calendar/2015/talk-the-amaze-project-bringing-3d-printing-into-the-metal-age

to name just a few...

The common problem being....vacuum.....zero G environment.....and stable temperature, for manufacturing, dependent on the material science of the additive for a space environment. At the ISS, if inside, stable environment...if outside...90 minute swing through extreme temperatures...if on the moon...depends on location..etc...etc

A Bigelow or Cygnus unit could be made into a "temperature controlled printer hanger" for large items, as some require a lot of time to print, to be drawn out one end by manipulator, when completed...for assembly of a structure....or on the moon, a printer hanger, controlled temp, for production.

Hope they do well, and are able to gainfully improve upon the design through their testing....there is still a wealth of knowledge from many countries trying great things in 3D printing....particular emphasis for metal composite printing.....Looks like we are still some time away from building large structural members for space or lunar sites, my guess, 10+ years, unless "rides" get a lot more frequent, up there.....

 

[conna]

Exotic metallurgy such as to be able to mix metals in 0g and not have them condense at different densities. Or the ability to cast metal using magnetic fields..... The future is going to be awesome. 

Meanwhile I am still waiting for my desktop 3d printer to become affordable. 

[DocM]

Exotic metallurgy such as to be able to mix metals in 0g and not have them condense at different densities. Or the ability to cast metal using magnetic fields..... The future is going to be awesome. 

Meanwhile I am still waiting for my desktop 3d printer to become affordable. 

 

A UK company named Metalysis has an electrolytic (metal oxides + molten salt bath) process for producing metal or alloy powders of arbitrary size for 3D printers. Not sure if it's work in a vacuum or 0g. Molten salts tend to have low vapor pressures, which should help.