German Company RPM Develops 3D Printed Lattice Padding for EOD Helmets — Better Protection, Less Weight

Lattice Structures Replace Foam in Safety-Critical Helmets

A German manufacturing company called RPM has developed a groundbreaking 3D printed padding system for explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) helmets that replaces traditional foam materials with a lattice structure.

The additively manufactured padding uses customizable lattice geometry to adapt mechanical properties like stiffness and damping behavior for different areas of the head. This design approach aims to improve protective performance while reducing weight and enhancing ventilation compared to conventional foam padding.

Industrial 3D Printing for Safety Applications

The company manages both development and manufacturing of the padding components, which are produced on industrial 3D printing systems from Farsoon. These systems provide the process stability and repeatability required for safety-critical applications.

RPMs customer handles marketing of the complete helmet and padding protective system.

Data-Driven Quality Assurance

To ensure quality standards for the safety-critical components, RPM uses software solutions from amsight for continuous data acquisition and analysis throughout the manufacturing process.

"The combination of additive manufacturing and data-driven quality assurance plays a central role in this," said Dr. Jörg Gerken, Technical Managing Director at RPM.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA provided scientific support for validating manufacturing quality through data analysis processes. The institute helped RPM implement the amsight software using process and machine data from the Farsoon systems.

Why Lattice Structures Matter

3D printed lattice structures offer several advantages over traditional foam:

• Customizable stiffness — Different areas of the helmet can have different support levels
• Weight reduction — Lattices are inherently lighter than solid foam
• Better ventilation — Open structures allow airflow
• Improved energy absorption — Lattice geometry can be tuned for specific impact scenarios

This development represents another example of 3D printing moving from prototyping into real-world safety applications where reliability and repeatability are paramount.