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Another project maybe off target

Im currently trying to build a new style of human powered trike
It is to take the basic shape of the motorcycle from men in black3 and the hubless bike from the olympic games a couple years ago

 

I want it to have a Hubless rim as the main wheel with twin frunt stering wheels also it is to by foot stearing with rowing pore drive

 

What  wouldn't give for a large formate 3d printer

 

Ok so any ideas on this one

 

I

  • Lynn,

     

    A hub-less system like that would rely on lubricated bearings to reduce friction, while also stabilizing the inner (static) and outer (dynamic) tracks opposite each other. The level of precision and hardening used in bearings suitable for this is just a bit ahead of the current level of technological maturity in additive manufacturing. The current top-end metal fabrication systems rely on powder-based sintering (or in the case of EBM, melting) with the final product retaining a granular structure that would create a great deal of friction between the plates. You could overcome the hardening limitations by using a stronger metal, but the cost would go up substantially.

     

    The overall build volume would be the greatest limiting factor under the current state of the art, given that the MIB3 "bikes" measured roughly 6' in diameter (using rough estimation and the actor's heights as a baseline), which would require a build plate roughly 6.5' in both X and Y directions. There are systems that can fabricate on this scale, like the Contour Crafting designs for fabricating buildings out of 3D printed concrete, but their margin of error was around +/- half a centimeter. Object's larger PolyJet printers allow a meter-long object to be created, but the Airbus 80' x 80' build volume for fabricating entire aircraft might need to be completed to directly fabricate what you describe here.

     

    It's great to see people thinking about the massive potential in additive manufacturing, though!

     

    Kirk