Aerial Repair and Aerial Additive Manufacturing

A large number of small‐scale demonstrations of aerial building and repair have been performed in literature. Aerial additive manufacturing is proposed as a methodology for building new structures and for performing repairs in locations inaccessible by ground‐based vehicles (such as at height or over unsteady terrain). Precise deposition of material on a surface requires a fully actuated platform with precise end‐effector stabilization; this can be achieved with novel vehicle architectures or by the addition of a manipulator. This chapter presents the broader context for the use of additive manufacturing techniques on construction sites, a review of aerial manufacturing systems and presents current work on a large‐scale aerial platform designed to facilitate larger‐scale printing and demonstrate novel aerial manufacturing/repair techniques.