Jan 27, 2015 | By Alec

I doubt many kids nowadays would be particularly thrilled when promised an elastic-powered car. While it was different in my time, the vast array of electric toys and high-quality video games available nowadays certainly increase expectations. However, I do not doubt that many kids would be absolutely thrilled by this impressive creation by three students from the Pasadena-based Art Center College of Design: a 3D printed RC car, powered by elasticity, that can reach a top speed of 30 miles per hour.

It’s called the Cirin and has been built by the three students Max Greenberg, Sameer Yeleswarapu, and Ian Cullimore. As they explained, their whole purpose was to create ‘a vehicle that would combine all of our past engineering education with the sculpture and industrial design skills we have acquired at art center. we drew inspiration from mid-1950’s formula 1 cars as well as the truss structures found inside the bones of a birds wing. these structure are both light and rigid, ideal properties for the car we wanted to design.’

While it certainly looks impressive and futuristic, its most interesting feature is an old-fashioned and remarkably simple technique: elasticity. Hidden away in its body is a 16-foot long elastic band, that needs to be firmly wound up with a power tool. The result? Enough power to propel the vehicle forward for several hundred feet, reaching a top speed of 30 mph. That’s impressive even for an electric car, never mind an elastic-powered one.

Moreover, the little vehicle can even be controlled, up to a certain extent. A handful of battery-powered electronics are included, providing steering and breaking possibilities. While these slightly detract from its identity as an elastic-powered RC car, it remains one of the most impressive 3D printed toys I’ve come across.

But as you might have guessed, this unfortunately had little to do with a desktop FDM 3D printer. To Instead, they’ve 3D printed this gorgeous futuristic vehicle in nylon using selective laser sintering. Fortunately, they were sponsored by 3D printing service provider Solidconcepts, who did the actual printing. Before that, they went through various iterations in Solidworks, Rhino and T-splines to creative their biological-looking form without compromising on functionality. Its clever design and sturdy material will, they ensure us, easily resist the pressures that the elastic band unleashes upon it.

This means we can’t refer you to any reproducible Thingiverse files, which is a terrible shame. Give a kid one of these, and he’ll be hooked onto 3D printing for the rest of his life.

 

 

Posted in 3D Printing Applications

 

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kyriljoseph wrote at 5/20/2016 6:40:00 PM:

i am very interested in 3D printing and i have a lot of modles of jets and cars dirt bikes

steventaitinger wrote at 4/6/2016 3:48:40 AM:

If your son is good at mechanical engineering then let him have fun designing his own car! I am working on my own rc car design if you search for my blog and it is fun. Just getting someone else's stl file is useless if you are actually interested in engineering. People are not selfish for having their own business ideas. Some people have taken the concept of open source way too far if you think people are selfish for not sharing all of their hard work for free.

ethan wrote at 12/23/2015 9:55:49 PM:

I am that kid

Jason wrote at 10/17/2015 12:57:37 PM:

Make this open source! Selfish buggers. My Son would love to print this. He has a penchant for mechanics/engineerring printing as I do. Please don't stifle the imagination of a child...or an incredibly inquisitive adult. This is a design that should be freely available as it is perfect for design and testing for full featured vehicles. The possibilities are endless...



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