Case Study: Cypress Woods High School achieves a NASA‑ready flying camera ROV with Stratasys Dimension 3D printing

High School Students Use Digital Manufacturing to Build Flying Camera for NASA

Cypress Woods High School took part in NASA’s HUNCH program to design a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) that could carry a camera and operate around the ISS while meeting strict size, safety and wireless-interference requirements. To keep tooling and costs practical for a school, the team used Stratasys Dimension 1200es 3D Printers and FDM technology (resold by Teaching Systems, Inc.) to produce functional prototypes and end-use parts.

Using Stratasys FDM, students printed six critical ROV components (top and bottom shells plus four motor covers), iterated designs quickly (for example, modifying the motor housing so motors could be installed either way), and validated performance during zero-gravity tests aboard a modified Boeing 727 (20–25 second weightless periods). The Stratasys solution delivered low-cost, rapid production of strong, flight-ready parts, accelerated design improvements, and positioned the team to pursue NASA approval and future ISS deployment.

Cypress Woods High School

Mike Bennett

Technology Teacher