The Audi Plastics 3D Printing Centre will use Stratasys’ J750 full-colour, multi-material 3D printing, to enable the production of entirely transparent, multi-coloured tail light covers in a single print.
In the case of tail light covers, the team traditionally used milling or moulding to produce individual parts.
The main challenge with these production techniques are the multi-coloured covers of the tail light housing, as these individual colour parts must be assembled and cannot be produced in one-piece.
Audi says it expects significant reduction in prototyping lead times for tail light covers, with turnaround times decreasing up to 50 per cent in comparison to traditional methods.
With over 500,000 colour combinations available, the team can 3D print transparent parts in multiple colours and textures that meet the stringent requirements of the Audi design approval process.
Having invested in its first Stratasys FDM 3D Printer in 2002, the division has since grown its portfolio to ten polymer 3D printers, including a range of Stratasys FDM and PolyJet 3D Printers.
“Design is one of the most important buying decisions for Audi customers, therefore it’s crucial we adhere to supreme quality standards during the design and concept phase of vehicle development,” explained Dr. Tim Spiering, Head of the Audi Plastics 3D Printing Centre.
“As a result, we need prototypes to have exact part geometries, no distortion and extremely high quality, as well as true-to-part colour and transparency. The Stratasys J750 3D Printer will offer us a significant advantage, as it allows us to print the exact textures and colours our design defines.”
Andy Middleton, President EMEA, Stratasys, added: “Audi is a prime example of how our unique full colour, multi-material 3D printing technology can combine several design processes into one, rapidly accelerating development cycles. If you extend the time-savings achieved by Audi on the tail lights to other parts of the vehicle, the overall impact on time-to-market can be huge.”