CZMarty
New Member
Since it's been some months into this project, I can finally share some progress on the exo suit.
I've been captured by the suits from Edge of Tomorrow ever since I saw the movie for the first time and while there might be better ways of spending hard earned money and my spare time, I simply had to build one.
My design is based on an aluminium load bearing "frame" made out of 2 and 3 mm sheet that will be covered by hollow plastic cover parts to give the exoskeleton the necessary bulk and correct shapes without being too heavy. I've been able to source the exact bearings (or slewing rings to be specific) used on the original so most joints copy those on the screen used suit.
I'm doing most of 3D work in Solidworks, followed by exporting STL files into Pepakura for unfolding and printing. My only gripe so far is the lack of options for material thickness in Pepakura. I have to adjust every single 3D model for printing to account for thickness of the PS sheets, otherwise the parts would end up being too large at least in one dimension.
Almost all the exterior parts are done from high impact polystyrene sheets in 0,5;1;2 and 3 mm thickness. I can get them fairly cheap, they are reasonably easy to work with and can be chemically welded together with solvent based glue. Since I don't have access to affordable 3D printing, most parts will have to be either made completely from scratch or copied in urethane from a scratchbuilt master.
Here's an example of the composite frame, a hollow HI PS exterior part with a matching aluminium support.
Due to the sheer number of slewing rings and plastic rod ends needed to build two complete suits, I've created molds for them and cast them in urethane resin. This approach might sacrifice some load bearing capacity but I feel confident that even these copies are still overkill for this application.
I'm hoping that this progress sharing will motivate me to do at least something on the suit every single day. Stay tuned for semi-regular updates.
Any ideas and C&C are most welcome.
I've been captured by the suits from Edge of Tomorrow ever since I saw the movie for the first time and while there might be better ways of spending hard earned money and my spare time, I simply had to build one.
My design is based on an aluminium load bearing "frame" made out of 2 and 3 mm sheet that will be covered by hollow plastic cover parts to give the exoskeleton the necessary bulk and correct shapes without being too heavy. I've been able to source the exact bearings (or slewing rings to be specific) used on the original so most joints copy those on the screen used suit.
I'm doing most of 3D work in Solidworks, followed by exporting STL files into Pepakura for unfolding and printing. My only gripe so far is the lack of options for material thickness in Pepakura. I have to adjust every single 3D model for printing to account for thickness of the PS sheets, otherwise the parts would end up being too large at least in one dimension.
Almost all the exterior parts are done from high impact polystyrene sheets in 0,5;1;2 and 3 mm thickness. I can get them fairly cheap, they are reasonably easy to work with and can be chemically welded together with solvent based glue. Since I don't have access to affordable 3D printing, most parts will have to be either made completely from scratch or copied in urethane from a scratchbuilt master.
Here's an example of the composite frame, a hollow HI PS exterior part with a matching aluminium support.
Due to the sheer number of slewing rings and plastic rod ends needed to build two complete suits, I've created molds for them and cast them in urethane resin. This approach might sacrifice some load bearing capacity but I feel confident that even these copies are still overkill for this application.
I'm hoping that this progress sharing will motivate me to do at least something on the suit every single day. Stay tuned for semi-regular updates.
Any ideas and C&C are most welcome.
