Remember when we told you Origin, Stress Engineering Services and nTopology have worked together to address an aerospace technical challenge? A team of engineers from these organizations has developed an F-16 hydraulic line clamp.
Following their participation in the U.S. Air Force Rapid Sustainment Office’s (RSO) inaugural Advanced Manufacturing Olympics, Origin announced that their team has placed 1st in the USAF F-16 Approval Sprint Challenge.
As a reminder, the virtual event comprised five Technical Challenges that feature additive manufacturing and reverse engineering. Each challenge aimed to explore innovative strategies for rapid design, qualification, and deployment of sustainment solutions which leverage new manufacturing materials, processes, and components.
The three companies worked together remotely. They designed, analyzed, tested and manufactured a solution for this aerospace technical challenge. They explain that their multi-material F-16 hydraulic tube clamp beat out stiff competition from 8 other teams from companies from National Institute for Aviation Research, Stratasys, and Markforged. Their award? The amount of $100K.
Origin reports that the requirements for the challenge were quite complex and looked at dimensional accuracy, stresses/loads, flammability compliance, temperature ratings (low and high), jet fuel exposure, vibration tolerance, hydraulic fluid exposure, and engine oil exposure. The part submitted by the team for this challenge was designed on nTopology software, uses Loctite 3955, a flame-retardant chemically-resistant material from Henkel, is manufactured on the Origin One 3D printer, and validated by Stress Engineering Services.
“We look forward to working with the Airforce Research Laboratory and the Airforce Life Cycle Management Center to build out official Technical Data Package for an increasing amount of 3D printed parts,” said Chris Prucha, co-founder and CEO at Origin.
“We are honored and humbled by our first-place finish in the Approval Sprint Technical Challenge for the Advanced Manufacturing Olympics,” said Dr. Ryan O’Hara, Technical Director Of Aerospace and Defense at nTopology. “Working alongside stellar teams at Origin and Stress Engineering proved to be both easy and rewarding. This is proof that combining all areas of expertise: design, analysis, and manufacturing can lead to unprecedented innovation and product design.”
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