The U.S. Marine Corps has used an additive manufacturing process to produce replacement parts for a small unmanned ground vehicle and fighter aircraft.
USMC said Thursday that Combat Logistic Battalion 31 uses a three-dimensional printer technology as an alternative source for components when immediate action is required, such as an impending failure of a mechanical part, USMC said Thursday.
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 flew an F-35B aircraft fitted with a 3D-printed bumper produced by CLB-31.
The battalion also produced a camera lens cap for an iRobot 310 UGV of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit’s explosive ordnance disposal team.
Additive manufacturing approach replicates software-generated 3D models by breaking them down into layers to be reproduced with a printer.
