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Spinoff story
3D Weaving Technology Strengthens Spacecraft, Race Cars
A real-world story of NASA technology finding a life beyond the mission.
About this technology
Overview
Seeking a new, structurally strong heat shielding material, Ames Research Center teamed up with high-tech 3D weaving company Bally Ribbon Mills. With seed money from Ames, they created a material that solved a challenging connection issue on the Orion_s heat shield. Development continued with additional funding in part through SBIR contracts, and now the Bally, Pennsylvania-based company sells the material to aerospace companies, and uses the techniques to make larger, denser blocks of 3D carbon composites for race cars.