Shape 3D-printed living module for a Piaggio Ape
Details of print element
Length 190 cm
Width 100 cm
Thickness 4 cm
Weight 70 kg
Print time 50 hours
Case study

3D-printed living module for a Piaggio Ape

Shape

A micro-camper cell for a three-wheeled Piaggio Ape, 3D printed in CoreLight3D® with 4 cm hollow-structure walls: roughly 70 kg, one third of a fibreglass cell, 50 hours of printing and 4,500 km of real road test to Nordkapp.

Problem

Turning a three-wheeled Piaggio Ape into a micro-camper able to travel more than 4,500 km to Nordkapp: a fibreglass living cell would weigh around 200 kg, too much for a vehicle with limited power and payload.

Need

A light, stiff module that withstands rain, continuous vibration and wide temperature swings, easy to finish and to mount on the vehicle's bed.

Solution

Module 3D printed with the UL-LFAM system in CoreLight3D®: 4 cm hollow-structure walls — thin skins a few millimetres thick with load-bearing internal ribs and reinforcements, an apparent density of about 100 kg/m³ versus ~300 kg/m³ for the solid material, ready for lamination, bonding, finishing and painting. Module size: about 190 × 100 cm, 175 cm high; 50 print hours.

Benefits

About 70 kg without interior fit-out, one third of an equivalent fibreglass cell. Real road test: over 4,500 km across nine countries to Nordkapp, days of up to 12 hours of driving, rain, 90 km/h wind gusts and temperatures from above 30 °C down to 2 °C.

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