Posted to News on 28th Jun 2007, 08:57
CRP Technology to present paper at RM conference
CRP Technology will present an interesting case study about applications of RM in the motorbike racing sector relating to its own Windform composite materials. The conference will be held at Holywell Park, which is part of Loughborough University (Loughborough, UK), on Wednesday 11 and Thursday 12 July 2007.
Ing Gabriele Tredozi, Special Projects Senior Technical Director of CRP Racing, will explain how Ilmor and CRP Technology are implementing RM in four-stroke MotoGP engine development.
In addition, CRP and Amber Composites Ltd will exhibit some interesting components.
Following the success of the 2006 First International conference on Rapid Manufacturing (RM), the 2007 conference will feature a state-of-the-art mix of world-leading industrial applications.
UK distributor
Amber Composites Ltd is a leading supplier and manufacturer to the composites, tooling and adhesives market and is the official distributor of Windform to the UK market, providing both materials and the technical support required to produce parts for RP and RM applications.
CRP Racing is a new company born from CRP Technology's experience in motorsport engineering.
The title of the paper will be Turning point in the creation of racing engines: structural parts made by laser sintering.
Besides the numerous non-structural parts made by selective laser sintering that can be found in the Ilmor engine, the 2007 innovation project is said to be a real turning point in the creation of racing engines. If this exceptional R&D proves itself to be capable of winning under extended running conditions, this will pave the way for future engine and frame production with improvements in delivery times, costs and performances.
The latest challenge is to optimise the camshaft cover for the newest Ilmor engine that will race in the 2007 MotoGP. The camshaft cover is a structural component that supports the camshaft bearing (the camshaft usually runs at around 19,000rpm), directly applied on the four-stroke 800cc engine's head. Inside there is also the lubricant oil for the timing system. The average working temperature: 130-140degC.
The improvements this project will achieve are as follows:
- Lightness of the engine head cover (being on top of the engine, each gramme saved means better rideability for the bike through a lower centre of mass)
- Reliability
- Fast modifications and production (the possibility to change some features of the part mid-season)
CRP and Ilmor have known each other for many years, both being protagonists in the F1 world, as hi-tech partners and suppliers.
About Ilmor
The Ilmor company was founded by Mario Illien, Paul Morgan and Roger Penske in 1984. It quickly became successful in Indy racing and progressed to competing in Formula One in the early 1990s, winning the world championship with McLaren in ྞ and ྟ.
After successes in many diverse racing series, in late 2002, Mercedes-Benz elected to begin a phased buyout of Ilmor. This began to stifle opportunities for Special Projects and so, by the end of June 2005, a new Ilmor was born that now possesses its own independent facilities employing 60 staff in total. The main business is the development and production of racing engines, from conception through to trackside.
About CRP Technology
Having been a primary active partner to the main racecar constructors for more than 30 years and ISO 9001:2000 certified, CRP Technology offers a good opportunity to the motorsport market: support throughout the entire project, including the manufacturing process.
The R&D Department has also developed Windform materials for laser sintering technology: Windform XT, which is carbon fibre-filled, enables the creation of high-end functional prototypes and production parts - the real challenge for the other RP materials, and so far never achieved.
After some co-operation in F1, CRP has been chosen by Ilmor for some key parts of the last MotoGP project: a four-stroke 800cc motorbike engine. Two Ilmor-powered bikes should have been participating in the 2007 MotoGP season but, after the first two races, Mario Illien decided to take a temporary break from racing in MotoGP due to funding problems.
McWilliam's bike's top speed during Qatar qualifying practice was 313.0kmh, the fourth highest after Ducati, one Honda and one Suzuki, leaving behind all Yamaha, all Kawasaki, one Suzuki and lots of Honda bikes.
