Rapid Prototyping Gets the ICON A5 Flying

Dreaming of getting your own Light Sport Aircraft (maximum gross takeoff mass <600 kg)? Then check out the ICON A5, a small recreational plane, which the Discovery Channel said “will handle like a sports car with the top down.”  Created by ICON Aircraft (www.iconaircraft.com; Los Angeles, CA), plane was scheduled to be at the legendary Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture in Oshkosh, WI, in July 2008.  But in order to make this date, ICON needed to quickly design seven or eight air ducting parts for A5, so they turned to RedEye, a rapid prototyping service bureau, for help.

“Using RedEye eliminated the tooling process for us,” said Matthew Gionta, Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Engineering, ICON Aircraft. Gionta estimated they saved two to three weeks on the schedule, as well as $2,000 and two days of work per part for tooling. “That’s a pretty significant amount,” he added.

In order to keep weight down while still maintaining the proper strength, RedEye recommended that the parts have a 0.06-in. thickness. Gionta chose ABS plastic, which can withstand the projected heat deflection above 180° F. He also used RedEye’s Ready Part process to provide a smooth finish since several of the parts were on the exterior, which saved extra body work time.  Two of the parts created with RedEye’s rapid prototyping included two 3D air intake engine cooling units that are mounted underneath the wings.. Since Gionta was familiar with rapid prototyping, he designed the parts to be more intricate. “I took advantage of the process and included intricate turning vanes inside the ducts that we couldn’t have manufactured by hand,” he said. “I put in extra features that we would not have been able to accommodate without very complex tooling. The result made for a higher performing duct.”