A 3D printed security system has helped save the lifetime of an NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver.
Josef Newgarden was concerned in a high-speed collision with Louis Foster throughout the current Bommarito Automotive Group 500 race on the World Vast Know-how Raceway in Madison Illinois.
Newgarden, a two-time INDYCAR SERIES champion, collided with Foster on lap 131, sending his No. 2 Chevrolet airborne. The Staff Penske driver landed the other way up, earlier than skidding alongside the tarmac in a bathe of sparks.
After being righted by the American Medical Response Security Staff (AMR), Newgarden was in a position to climb out of the car, escaping severe harm. The brunt of the pressure was absorbed by his Aeroscreen, a 3D printed cockpit security system that was first launched in 2020 and up to date with a extra light-weight design in 2024.
Foster, a Rookie driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, spun out with main harm to his Honda-powered Dallara chassis. He additionally walked away largely unscathed after his Aeroscreen deflected a hail of particles.
The system is a compulsory characteristic on all NTT INDYCAR SERIES automobiles for highway and avenue course races. It contains a 3D printed titanium body, engineered by Purple Bull Superior Applied sciences (RBAT) and manufactured by the Austrian mechanical techniques firm Pankl.
This body is paired with a laminated polycarbonate ballistic windscreen, developed by plane windshield specialist PPG Industries. Collectively, they type a protecting barrier related in operate to the Halo crash-protection system utilized in Components 1 since 2018.
3D printed Aeroscreen enhances IndyCar security
Previous to its 2020 debut, a number of manufacturing strategies had been explored for Aeroscreen manufacturing.
The primary design was reportedly made utilizing titanium casting. Nevertheless, prolonged manufacturing lead occasions made it unable to fulfill the tight deadline forward of the 2020 INDYCAR season opener. Consequently, Pankl was chosen to manufacture the body utilizing its EOS M400-4 laser powder mattress fusion (LPBF) 3D printer.
The unique Aeroscreen (Model 1.0) featured a body constructed from 5 3D printed sections welded collectively. In pre-race testing, it withstood forces equal to 34,000 kilos, whereas the ballistic windscreen was examined to endure the influence of a 17.3-pound object touring at 220 mph. The system made its on-track debut throughout testing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in October 2019 and was formally launched in competitors in February 2020.
Final 12 months, INDYCAR launched Model 2.0, a lighter display screen designed to reinforce efficiency and luxury. It consists of built-in air vents to enhance cockpit cooling, together with a front-facing rubber 3D printed to assist stop hand accidents throughout a crash.
The up to date design first hit the monitor throughout the 2024 Acura Grand Prix in Lengthy Seashore. Its weight was trimmed from 18.9 lbs on Model 1.0 to 14.5 kilos, whereas retaining the identical power as the unique. That is due to the brand new, topologically optimized 3D printed titanium body.
Mixed with the ballistic windscreen, the up to date Aeroscreen presents a complete weight discount of 11.1 kilos, decreasing downforce by roughly 35 lbs.
Enhanced cooling performs a important position in boosting driver efficiency, in accordance with Tino Belli, Director of Aerodynamic Improvement for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. She famous in a press launch that drivers persistently emphasised the necessity for higher airflow, as their physique temperatures typically exceed 100°F throughout races. Racing groups also can set up an optionally available filter to assist preserve mud out of the cockpit.
Additive manufacturing accelerates motorsport
3D printing just isn’t new in motorsport. Racing groups have lengthy leveraged additive manufacturing to offer an edge on the monitor. For instance, the Oracle Purple Bull Racing F1 Staff is a eager adopter of superior applied sciences, together with 3D printing.
In an interview with 3D Printing Business, Ian Handscombe, Head of High quality Engineering at Purple Bull Racing, claimed: “I don’t suppose we are going to proceed to be on monitor except we embrace [3D printing].”
Technical partnerships with firms play a key position in supporting additive manufacturing at Purple Bull Racing. A lot so, forward of the 2025 F1 season, Purple Bull prolonged its long-term collaboration with manufacturing expertise firm Hexagon. This builds on an 18-year-long relationship with Hexago because the group’s unique metrology associate.
The Swedish agency provides Purple Bull with 3D scanners and digitalization capabilities. This expertise permits the F1 stalwart to make over 20,000 automotive design adjustments every season. In keeping with Hexagon, metrology expertise has helped minimize faults by over 50% over the previous two years.
Elsewhere, BWT Alpine F1 group leverages 3D Programs’ SLA and SLS 3D printers to help Components 1 wind tunnel testing. The racing group reportedly 3D prints 25,000 elements yearly to cut back analysis and improvement time and enhance on-track efficiency.
Equally, the McLaren F1 racing group has an extended partnership with 3D printer OEM Stratasys. Courting again to 2017, this collaboration has seen McLaren leverage 5 Stratasys Neo 800 to help aerodynamic wind tunnel elements. Elsewhere on the grid, Alfa Romeo Racing made intensive use of Additive Industries’ MetalFAB1 3D printer throughout the 2021 season. The group 3D printed light-weight racing automotive parts, which value 90% lower than these produced utilizing conventional strategies.
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Featured picture reveals Josef Newgarden’s INDYCAR crash. Picture through NTT INDYCAR SERIES.
