Engineers at the University of Southampton have designed and flown the world's first "printed" aircraft, which could revolutionize the economics of aircraft design. The wings, integral control surfaces, and access hatches of the unmanned air vehicle (UAV) were printed on an EOS EOSINT P730 nylon laser sintering machine, which fabricates plastic or metal objects, building up the item layer by layer.
The SULSA (Southampton University Laser Sintered Aircraft) plane is an unmanned air vehicle (UAV) whose entire structure has been printed, including wings, integral control surfaces and access hatches. It was printed on an EOS EOSINT P730 nylon laser sintering machine, which fabricates plastic or metal objects, building up the item layer by layer.
No fasteners were used and all equipment was attached using ‘snap fit’ techniques so that the entire aircraft can be put together without tools in minutes.
The project team worked in partnership with 3T RPD who undertook the manufacture and detailing of the design, as well as supplying laser sintering knowledge and expertise.
