The Atoms to Aircraft to Spacecraft (A2A) NASA Universal Leadership Initiative (ULI) aims to revolutionize aerospace systems by aligning high performance, rapid production, and affordability.
USC’s goals are focused on thermoplastic unidirectional tape-based assemblies, fusion bonding, multi-scale computational models, and real-world experiments.
In collaboration with our joint organizations and Industry Advisory Board we are aiming
to fabricate customized thermoplastic tape for high-rate manufacturing and manufacture
two demonstrative urban air mobility vehicle parts to highlight the ability to tailor
materials for specific use cases. The collaborative team is working to effectively
combine computational approaches with experimental approaches at each stage of characteristic
manufacturing flows to highlight each innovative manufacturing technology.
The A2A ULI redefines aerospace possibilities. Its journey from atoms to aircraft
to spacecraft exemplifies USC’s commitment to innovation, collaboration, and seamless
convergence of advanced materials, ingenious designs, and efficient manufacturing.
Project Goals
- Demonstrative Urban Air Mobility Components at High-Rate and Reduced Cost
- Develop Custom Material Systems for Novel Manufacturing Processes and Structural Designs
- Leverage Collective Knowledge to Increase TRL from (2) to (5) by Summer of 2024.
- Computational-experimental validation of fusion bonding with novel materials