AM lugs and Carbon tubes is quite a good manufacturing idea. As long as the bonds are strong and the double lap joints seems a sensible idea to stop peel.
I think the only technology they've missed a trick with is some topology optimisation. I'm sure they could have come up with some really funky looking organic shapes with a properly optimised solution. This would have added to the aesthetic that I feel this bike is missing a little. To me it looks like all the parts are drawn in CAD from the start.
But I suppose the topology optimisation wouldn't lend itself to customised geometry, a lot of processing for each frame. Although it could have been used for some 'generic' starting blocks.
Good luck to them. I'm sure the design and processes will refine as time goes on.
How can a lug be stronger than full carbon anyhow?
your missing the point its not strongest its whats strong enough to do the job and then keep us out of the internet horror failure stories ,sometimes this is often enough to meet the design requirements (only robot will know THEIR objectives) if your going for stongest thats forged heat treated then machined then heated a bit more and some kind of surface finishing, a wee bit more cost than 3d printing a titanium lug.
theres always been lots of moves in engineering to cut costs, however sometimes people misconsturue removing tooling as a cost saver
if you make a mould and a part that costs 300 notes total part lifecycle then make 1 component that's printed at 300 notes total part lifecycle its still cost you 300 notes and thats where the cost of 3d printing sits at this time its not particularly cheap.
If you work in the industrys where these bits and bobs are becoming common even aerospace parts aren't being used for their strength a lot however do enable parts to be made with less labour for example no welds or fixturing
when the price drops to a level suitable for production and the strength comes up then you will probably find these boxes alongside cnc in a workshop banging out parts, CNC was a novelty 30 years ago and now we have a 5 axis for less than 80k
This illustrates the straight forwards way of doing "custom carbonfibre" quite nicely IMO:
You can do variations on it but that's your basic method there...
I've not seen carbon compressed like that before, very interesting.
Looks like they have a stand at Fort Bill this weekend. If anyone is up there, could you put up a few 'real world' photos of it???
Did anyone at the WC see it - thoughts???
