It might seem like a science fiction story just a few years ago, but we are now at a time where printing appliances, prostheses and even houses is quite doable. It is not surprising then, that the sector is slowly taking over the production of vehicles. One amazing example is a fully 3D-printed motorcycle, designed and produced by the start-up BigRep located in Berlin, Germany.
The motorcycle, called Nera, looks like it came straight out of the latest science fiction movie. It is actually a demonstration of the technical capabilities of the 3D printer that the company sells. They produce big-scale-3D-printers for companies from the machine and vehicle building sector or tool designing industry.
Several mechanical elements and sensors were integrated into the printing materials beforehand, making them invisible in the end result. In fact, only the engine and a few electronic elements had to be added afterwards.
Nera is not alone on the market of 3D-printed motorcycles; there are other vehicles like LiveWire by Harley-Davidson, Lightrider by AP Works, and FXS by Zero.
Even 3D-printed cars will at some point be a regular part of our lives. These are innovative and exciting projects, demonstrating what the future of additive manufacturing could look like.
Here’s a short video by BigRep, providing a glimpse of this outstanding innovation: