Ford has been working with EOS to develop a voice imprinted wheel nut locking concept using additive manufacturing (AM) in an effort to combat theft. Together with the German AM specialist, Ford has introduced a metal 3D printed rim lug nut, used to secure a wheel on a vehicle, which features a completely unique pattern derived from the vehicle owner’s voice.
Using a sound wave pattern from a simple sentence, EOS were able to create a completely unique mechanism which provides an added layer of security in a similar fashion to fingerprint recognition. The idea is there will only be one pair of these unique parts – the lock itself and the key – in existence, making them virtually impossible to clone. The designs are created using a web-based platform from trinckle, who have previously worked with Ford on the implementation of a software solution which streamlines the design of 3D printed jigs and fixtures.
The wheel lock pairs are printed in stainless steel 17-4ph on a EOS direct metal laser sintering system, heat treated and machined to achieve finished part properties. Ford has already employed EOS additive technology in order to develop other special applications, leveraging the design freedom of 3D printing, bot to meet the increasing demand of customization by customers and security requirements of future vehicles.