| According to foreign media reports, Lockheed Martin is no stranger to 3D printed parts, but recently the company has produced the largest part to date - a titanium cover used to cover the satellite fuel tank. Metal cover width 3.8 Feet (1.2 m), 4 inches (10 cm) thick. It is understood that the dome is the most complicated part of the fuel tank, the material waste rate of traditional manufacturing technology is more than 80%. However, this waste can be reduced by 3D printing technology. At the same time, it can also reduce manufacturing costs and time.  Rick Ambrose, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space, said that the largest 3D printing components they have built so far show that they can build satellites at twice the current speed and half the cost of today's costs. 'We are working hard to achieve better The result. For example, we reduced the time to manufacture the dome by 87% and shortened the total delivery time from two years to three months.   Of course, this fuel tank made with 3D printing technology requires a series of tests to ensure that it can be used in vacuum for many years.    |
