OTR Engineered Solutions has developed a new prototyping service, OTR3DLab, designed to reduce product development timelines for off-the-road tires, wheels, tracks and related components.

Bringing a new off-the-road product concept to fruition historically required significant investment in tooling, long lead times and limited opportunity for a full-scale evaluation before committing to production, a company press release states.

With the OTR3DLab, OTR can produce physical prototypes of new product concepts in a matter of weeks instead of months using advanced, large-format 3D printing technology. This process allows customers to assess on-vehicle aesthetics, fitment, proportions, clearance and overall design direction before making the commitment to costly production tooling.

More than 1,000 printable materials, including flexible, rubber-like elastomers designed to closely emulate the look and feel of a production tire, are supported at lab. The technology can produce prototypes of up to 1 cubic meter, allowing customers to receive large-scale concepts of treads, tracks, wheels, castings, housings and other components that imitate the real product, the press release states.

Prototypes can be mounted directly onto standard steel or aluminum wheels using conventional tire-mounting equipment, allowing customers to review assemblies in a real-world format. In some cases, the prototypes can also be placed directly on equipment for visual evaluation, packaging studies and final design validation.

“OTR3DLab gives customers something they have never truly had before in the off-the-road market: the ability to physically experience a full-scale concept before making major tooling decisions,” said Patrick Sexton, global vice president of engineering and innovation at OTR Engineered Solutions. “Instead of relying only on drawings, renderings, or small-scale models, customers can now see the product, touch it, and review it on actual equipment. It allows them to make quicker decisions with reduced risk.”

OTR3DLab also works hand-in-hand with OTR’s TreadIQ, an AI-powered platform that develops off-the-road tread concepts for OEMs and distributors. The program allows OTR engineers to incorporate customer preferences for tread styling, performance attributes, application needs and visual direction.

Once the concept is created using TreadIQ, OTR3DLab can turn the digital design into a physical prototype for further evaluation.  

Source: OTR Engineered Solutions