Additively Manufacturing Precision Plastic Optics to Reduce Cost and Improve Availability

M2830 — Low-Cost Printed Optics for the F-35 HMD

Objective

The design and manufacturing time to produce complex optics makes optic design
slow and expensive. For example, the optic manufacturing method currently used to
produce F-35 Helmet Mounted Display (HMD) optics, diamond turning, requires
expensive machine time and post-polishing to achieve surface quality, making optics
produced by this method expensive. Other manufacturing methods used for plastic
optics, including injection molding, offer the ability to rapidly produce plastic optics
at a cheaper price, but require expensive molds to achieve high surface quality and
have inherent problems, such as shrinkage and sinks, that eliminate the method from
being a viable production method for many precision optics. In addition to cost
and manufacturing limitations, existing optic manufacturing technologies constrain
optics engineers due to the design limits associated with conventional methods,
thus limiting next-generation optic design concepts. There is a need to develop new
technology and capability to reduce both cost and design time while allowing for
continued advancement in optic technology by removing manufacturing limitations.
The objective of this Electro-Optics Center (EOC) project is to develop an additive
manufacturing (AM) laser-printing process to manufacture precision plastic optics.
In addition to printing first-order optics for demonstration, this project will define a
printing process that can be leveraged for printing optics used on multiple platforms,
increasing the project’s impact.
This project is being supported by subcontractor, Rockwell Collins, Inc.

Payoff

The initial proof-of-concept developed by this project will showcase the ability for
AM to produce precision plastic optics at a significantly lower cost when compared
to current, traditional methods. It is expected that using AM to print six of the eight
required optical elements used in each F-35 HMD optics assembly, rather than the
current process of diamond turning and post-polishing, will generate cost savings
of 60 percent, or approximately $10,000 per HMD unit. With a projected need
of 7,500 HMDs, the total costs savings generated by using AM optics in the F-35
HMD optics assembly are estimated at $75M.

Implementation

This concept demonstration project will determine if this low-cost AM process
can produce optics of sufficient quality to use for the F-35 HMD. Results of this
project will be used / leveraged to refine an AM process to print high-quality, lowcost F-35 HMD optic assemblies. This process will significantly reduce the cost of
plastic optics used in the F-35 HMD in addition to other potential platforms that
could benefit from an AM solution for producing precision plastic optics.