Aluminum material and hinges

[fagould4525]

I have been reading a little about 3D metal printing and was curious if I can create two flat parts with a hinge. What I am trying to do is redesign a rover chassis piece that’s currently bent aluminum and replace the bend with a hinge so it can be opened, like a car trunk.

I’m curious what requirements I need to consider with this redesign. I found a few hinges on thingiverse.com but need a hinge more like a piano hinge than door hinge. I’m open to any recommendations, warnings, or give-it-up advice.

[wirlybird]

I think the design aspect would be pretty straight forward. Getting it printed may be costly. I would suggest getting an STL that is similar in dimensions to what you envision and loading it into one of the on-line printers than can actually print in metal to get an idea of costs.