Tough times can fuel innovation, and battle-hardened Ukraine has demonstrated that fact of life more than most places in recent years. Since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, the country has utilized drones and robotics in ways not before seen in large-scale warfare. More recently, Ukraine has introduced a variety of remotely controlled ground vehicles tasked with entering contested territory and resupplying areas or even evacuating wounded troops. But while those wheeled robots help keep soldiers off the front lines, they are also vulnerable. Their air-filled tires are particularly vulnerable, since they can be shot at or break when rolling over barbed wire, shrapnel or even rugged debris. To solve that issue, engineers from a pair of Ukrainian companies developed a new type of 3D-printable tire that doesn’t require any air at all. And it’s already being deployed on front lines.
The airless wheel is the result of a collaboration between two Print&Live UA, and iSCALE 3D. Their design is proposed to be built for Uncrewed Ground Vehicles (UGV) that come in various shapes and sizes depending on their task. Instead of a rubber casing filled with pressurized air, these new wheels are 3D printed around a lightweight internal lattice made from durable elastomers and composite polymers. The lattice flexes and springs back over rough terrain, essentially doing the cushioning work that air pressure does in conventional tires, but without the risk of a sudden debilitating puncture.
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