The first 3-D printed aircraft takes flight

The news from the world of 3D printing just gets cooler by the week. Andy Keane and Jim Scanlan of the University of Southampton have designed and printed a model, flying plane. Yes, printed. We are still in the phase where that verb should inspire awe when noting it can produce more than a book report. They’ve named this version “Sulsa” (Southampton University Laster Sintered Aircraft).

The group first laid out the designs of their prototype on the personal computer and then instructed the printer to create the plane in layers a hundred micrometers thick. Powders of plastic, metal or titanium are spread in a two dimensional arrangement with the required layer after which a laser's warmth then fuses that layer using the prior. Consider developing a sandcastle by sprinkling a layer in circle, then sprinkling one more on best and patting the two with each other, and repeating until finally you have a full construction.

The plane they finally constructed had a wingspan of one.5 meters and price about $5,000 (about $8,100) to produce. It also was constructed with an electric motor which obviated the need for fuel. The design took about two days along with the printing only took five. During its brief flight, it was in a position to attain speeds up to 100 mph.

When one thinks about these types of figures and that this really is the very first of its kind, you can't support but see a really various future for human-assisted production.