3D Printed Plastic, the Key to Making This New Flying Suit

3D Printed Plastic

Technology advances very fast, it is increasingly common to see projects that seem very distant and futuristic but are not really that far away. The concept “flying” is one of the most common as far as futurism is concerned, since for example, cars or flying aircraft have always been spoken of.

The British company Gravity Industries, responsible for the manufacture of flying suits, has announced that it will develop a new flying suit based on an electric propulsion system instead of burning hydrocarbons. This suit that receives the name of Gravity eSuit, will be manufactured thanks to plastic materials printed in 3D.

Specifically, the material used will be 3D printed polypropylene. The choice of this material is due to its lightness, strength and durability, in addition to its mechanical properties and its ability to mimic the bending of human bones. Until the month of July, the company will not release any image or more details of the product. We’ll get a first look at the product at the Goodwood Festival of Speed between the 8th and 11th of that month.

Advantages of an electric suit

“Thanks to the polypropylene and its organic nature, people see a human who is flying when someone is in the flying suit. They are not tethered to a device or sitting in a vehicle, they appear to be flying for real, and it is that distinction that makes the difference, “says Mark Dickin, Manager of Additive Manufacturing and Molding Engineering.

Traje Volador

One of the keys to this new suit is to get rid of all the heat and fuel around the pilot, as the turbines get very hot and thermal management is very important. This is the advantage of the suit being electric, since it is much safer for the pilot to carry a battery on his back than a large amount of fuel. In addition, it is planned that the turbines will be replaced by ducted fans.

Company Background

In 2019 the company managed to break a Guinness Record with its MK 3 suit. A motor suit reached a speed of 136 kilometers per hour , surpassing the previous record that Gravity Industries also held in 2017, when the MK 2 suit was reached 51 kilometers per hour.

In both records, the pilot of the suit was the founder of the company, Richard Browning. In the previous suits, metals and polymers were also used for their development, highlighting the fixing elements and structure.

Traje Volador

The previous suits being made of metal for the most part took about two weeks to manufacture and assemble. However, with this new suit in which plastic predominates in its manufacture, it can take less than 24 hours to build it, since thanks to the plastic many unique parts and pieces can be consolidated (including the cooling ducts).