Guided missile is produced by 3D printers?

The US researchers are developing manufacturing technology with guided missiles 3D printers.

Defense Update reported recently, Raytheon Corporation, USA has completed 80% of the production process guided missile with 3D printing technology. The company's engineers use commercial printer available combined with some modifications to fit the standard weapons production.

Machines manufactured by Raytheon Missile Printable body, motor, control enclosure, some parts of the navigation system. "We have a lot of potential in this field. Machine created machine, the user can print on demand, there is the future, "Jeremy Danforth, corporate engineers share.

NASA engineers are exploring the possibility of using new technology to print electronic circuits to make casings for advanced transmission materials or manufacture for artillery fin drive next-generation navigation. The advancement of 3D printing technology allows the company to expand the traditional production process.

The new technology not only speed up production but also help save up costs compared with the production process and traditional outsourcing. Besides cost benefits, engineers can easily change the design of the product by modifying the input parameters for the control system of the printer. This process may only take a few hours, instead of months like before.

Travis Mayberry, engineer in charge of the research program's future technology Raytheon said: "We are trying to improve the design helps to increase heat resistance, while retaining the lightweight structure of the missile in 3D technology, which we hardly achieved with conventional production methods. " According to Defense Update, the company's engineers are manufacturing and testing missiles by 3D printing technology to assess the quality and efficiency compared with traditional manufacturing.

Project engineers argue, before making missile produced by printing technology in use, they need plenty of time to assess the relevant issues. Raytheon experts still face many challenges ahead, but their trials have opened up the possibility of producing everything including the most sophisticated weapons in 3D printing technology. Therefore, the company said Raytheon is steep sprinted to build a missile 'genuine' can fly especially at least 80% of the parts will be made of 3D printing technology.