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US Navy Tests 3D Printing Custom Drones On Its Ships
itwbennett writes: Researchers at the Naval Postgraduate School are testing the use of 3D printers on ships to produce custom drones outfitted for specialized missions. The idea, said Alan Jaeger, a faculty research associate at the school, is that ships could set sail with kits of the core electronics parts, since they are common to most drones, but have the bodies designed according to specific requirements for each mission. A prototype drone was designed by engineers on shore based on requirements of the sailors at sea, and the 3D design file was emailed to the USS Essex over a satellite link. Flight tests revealed some of the potential problems, most of which were associated with operating the drone rather than the printing itself, Jaeger said. 'Even with a small amount of wind, something this small will get buffeted around,' he said. They also had to figure out the logistics of launching a drone from a ship, getting it back, how it integrated with other flight operations, and interference from other radio sources like radar.
I seems to me the real saving here is that powdered plastic is a lot denser than hollow aerodynamic plastic shapes and so won't take up anywhere near as much storage space.
Rather than trying to store 1000 small drones on board, you just have a big tank with enough powdered plastic to make 1000 small drones and the various non-printable bits (electronics, batteries and motors), which are smaller and easier to store anyway
Then you just keep 10-20 drones ready and print more off as you use up the stock of ready made drones.
These comments are my personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the other voices in my head.
There is some practicality to be realised here. What if instead of carrying around ten prefab copies of every component that might get damaged during operation you just carried around a block of material and printed out what you needed for repair on an as needed basis? This would also reduce the amount of loss due to components being damaged, warped or what ever the hell else in transit. As a civilian I have not the slightest idea what cost savings this might provide, but as a taxpayer the the thought of the US Navy of all organizations saving money brings a smile to my face. I don't even care if every penny of that savings gets dumped back into the F-35, it's still a step in the right direction.