How Freefly Systems uses SLS 3D printing for its video drones
Based in Washington state, Freefly Systems is a company that specializes in camera movement systems. In other words, they make specialized drones for capturing aerial footage. These drones, which can be equipped with cameras worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, must be able to withstand all sorts of environments, from mountainous altitudes to hot and arid deserts, while ensuring equipment remains safe and that great footage is captured. With a portfolio comprising Andor (2022), Dune (2021), and Mad Max Fury Road (2015), there’s no question that Freefly does what it does very well.
3D printing has been an integral tool for Freefly Systems in the development and production of its products for years, enabling it to rapidly iterate and test new designs for its camera-mounted drones. While it first worked with a legacy SLS system, in more recent years the company has relied on Formlabs‘ SLS 3D printing ecosystem, specifically the Fuse 1 and Fuse 1+ 30W 3D printers and Fuse Blast, which have enabled it to take its prototyping and production to new heights.
At its Washington facility, prototyping remains one of the key uses of the technology. As Nate Kuczun, Payloads and Systems Engineer at Freefly Systems, said: “I can design crazy, weird shapes, and it helps us get through our R&D process a lot faster.” For instance, it developed antenna masts for the Alta X Gen2’s dual GPS system, a complex component that required many iterations before the ideal design was found. Freefly also used Formlabs’ technology to prototype a FPV camera mount—a part that had previously been prototyped using FDM but kept breaking—with success.
“In drones, iteration cycles are often significantly faster than most aerospace projects,” Kuczun explained. “In a lot of other aerospace systems, it’s much harder to get real flight data. But here we can actually test things in the real world pretty quickly. Having the Fuse allows us to come up with a really quick and easy way to get hardware onto our drones for different testing.”
Beyond prototyping, the drone manufacturer has also found tooling and end-use applications for the 3D printing technology. In the case of the former, it 3D printed a production assembly fixture for aligning an OLED screen for the Pilot Pro drone remote controller. In terms of end-use parts, Freefly manufactures a component for the Herelink Radio module. By printing the functional part in-house, the company has both saved time and simplified its supply chain.
Nylon 12 is the material of choice at Freefly, as it has properties suitable for functional prototyping and end-use production. Among its properties are a good strength-to-weight ratio, durability, and environmental stability. As Kuczun added: “Nylon 12 is a good general-use material. It’s strong enough that we can test the form and fit of it, and we’ve flown Fuse-printed parts.”
Freefly Systems’ drones are used for various applications. As we said, the camera-mounted devices are used to capture footage for Blockbuster films, but they can also be fitted with cameras and LiDAR for infrastructure inspections, surveying, and scientific research.
