Machinedesign 6765 3d Cobra 0
Machinedesign 6765 3d Cobra 0
Machinedesign 6765 3d Cobra 0
Machinedesign 6765 3d Cobra 0
Machinedesign 6765 3d Cobra 0

Shelby Cobra Recreated Using 3D Printing

Feb. 11, 2015
Engineers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee built a replica of the Shelby Cobra to celebrate the car’s 50th anniversary.

Engineers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee built a replica of the Shelby Cobra to celebrate the car’s 50th anniversary and to show off the capabilities of the lab’s Big Area Additive Manufacturing 3D printer (BAAM). It can make strong, lightweight composite parts as large as 36 ft3, and was responsible for making 500 lb of the 1,400-lb Cobra. One-fifth of those 500 lb is carbon fiber. The oak Ridge team designed, manufactured, and assembled the sports car in six weeks, which included 24 hr of 3D printing time. BAAM, which was developed by OakR and Cincinnati Inc., Harrison, Ohio, builds components 500 to 1,000 times faster than current industrial 3D printers. BAAM was also recently upgraded to print using smaller beads of material, so the final finish is smoother. Still, it required the services of TruDesign, a Knoxville-based firm, to give the car its Class A automotive finish.

The car will now be used to test battery and fuel cell technologies, hybrid powertrains, wireless charging devices, and other electronics. Engineers made the Cobra’s subsystems modular to make to simplify removing and replacing them during testing.

Sponsored Recommendations

Altech's Liquid Tight Strain Relifs Catalog

March 13, 2024
With experienced Product Engineers and Customer Service personnel, Altech provides solutions to your most pressing application challenges. All with one thought in mind - to ensure...

Industrial Straight-Through Cable Gland

March 13, 2024
Learn more about Altech's cable glands and all they have to offer for your needs!

All-In-One DC-UPS Power Solutions

March 13, 2024
Introducing the All-In-One DC-UPS, a versatile solution combining multiple functionalities in a single device. Serving as a power supply, battery charger, battery care module,...

Smooth Sorting with SEW-EURODRIVE!

Feb. 22, 2024
Sorting systems are essential when it comes to warehouse automation, material handling, and distribution. SEW-EURODRIVE’s automated sorting solutions increase capacity, reliability...

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of Machine Design, create an account today!