Secondary Processing Development and Prototyping of Cast Single-Piece Vehicle

While single-piece structures are ideal for use as combat vehicle underbodies due to their structural integrity and ease of integration, fabricating such large components with relatively homogeneous material properties that can meet the rigorous specifications necessary for acceptable performance under blast loading conditions is extremely challenging. The ability to cast such parts would be highly desirable both from a technical performance and commercial perspective in terms of design flexibility, scale, production rate, and yield. However, inherent drawbacks in the casting process such as the tendency toward the generation of material defects1 including shrinkage, micro/macro porosity, cracking, and inclusions have so far limited its applicability for fabricating large, high performance components/structures for blast protection. Corvid Technologies and Spokane Industries propose the development of a secondary processing technique in order to address these limitations and capitalize on the significant advantages offered by the casting process.