Vehicles Space frame

1 vehicles

1.1 aircraft
1.2 cars
1.3 motorcycles , bicycles

vehicles

yeoman ya-1 vs ca-6 wackett frames.


aircraft

the cac ca-6 wackett , yeoman ya-1 cropmaster 250r aircraft built using same welded steel tube fuselage frame.

cars

spaceframes used in chassis designs of automobiles , motorcycles. in both spaceframe , tube-frame chassis, suspension, engine, , body panels attached skeletal frame of tubes, , body panels have little or no structural function. contrast, in unibody or monocoque design, body serves part of structure.

tube-frame chassis pre-date spaceframe chassis , development of earlier ladder chassis. advantage of using tubes rather previous open channel sections resist torsional forces better. tube chassis little more ladder chassis made 2 large diameter tubes, or single tube backbone chassis. although many tubular chassis developed additional tubes , described spaceframes , design correctly stressed spaceframe , behaved mechanically tube ladder chassis, additional brackets support attached components, suspension, engine etc. distinction of true spaceframe forces in each strut either tensile or compression, never bending. although these additional tubes did carry load, diagonalised rigid spaceframe.

the first true spaceframe chassis produced in 1930s designers such buckminster fuller , william bushnell stout (the dymaxion , stout scarab) understood theory of true spaceframe either architecture or aircraft design.

the first racing car attempt spaceframe cisitalia d46 of 1946. used 2 small diameter tubes along each side, spaced apart vertical smaller tubes, , not diagonalised in plane. year later, porsche designed type 360 cisitalia. included diagonal tubes, can considered first true spaceframe.

jaguar c-type frame

the maserati tipo 61 of 1959 (birdcage) thought of first in 1949 dr. robert eberan-eberhorst designed jowett jupiter exhibited @ london motor show in 1949 , taking class win @ 1950 le mans 24hr. later small british car manufacturers developed concept tvr produced alloy-bodied 2 seater on multi tubular chassis, appeared in 1949.

colin chapman of lotus introduced first production car, mark vi, in 1952. influenced jaguar c-type chassis, 4 tubes of 2 different diameters, separated narrower tubes. chapman reduced main tube diameter lighter lotus, did not reduce minor tubes further, possibly because considered appear flimsy buyers. although described spaceframe, lotus did not build true spaceframe chassis until mark viii, influence of other designers, experience aircraft industry.

other notable examples of space frame cars include audi r8, ferrari 360, lamborghini gallardo, mercedes-benz sls amg, pontiac fiero , saturn s-series.

chilean kitcar showing off spaceframe structure (2013).

a large number of kit cars, possibly majority made in uk, use space frame construction, because manufacture in small quantity requires simple , inexpensive jigs, , relatively easy amateur designer achieve stiffness space frame. space frames mig welded, although more expensive kits use tig welding, slower , more highly skilled process. many of these resemble lotus mark vii in general outline , mechanical layout, others close replicas of ac cobra or italian supercars, original designs resembling no other vehicle. often, considerable effort has been made designers produce true space frames, points of significant load braced in 3 dimensions, resulting in strength , stiffness comparable to, or better than, typical production cars. others tube frames not true space frames because use relatively large diameter tubes, curved, carrying bending loads, due large diameter remain adequately rigid. inferior designs not true space frames, because tubes carrying considerable bending loads. result in considerable flexing due dynamic loads, , fatigue fracture, failure mechanism rare in correctly designed true space frame. reduced stiffness impair handling.

a drawback of spaceframe chassis encloses of working volume of car , can make access both driver , engine difficult. spaceframes have been designed removable sections, joined bolted pin joints. such structure had been used around engine of lotus mark iii. although inconvenient, advantage of spaceframe same lack of bending forces in tubes allow modelled pin-jointed structure means such removable section need not reduce strength of assembled frame.

motorcycles , bicycles

italian motorbike manufacturer ducati extensively uses tube frame chassis on models.

space frames have been used in bicycles, such designed alex moulton.