SITUATION The US Department of Energy has funded this client’s laboratory for advanced research in fusion power. Using a device called a stellarator, they have been able to generate a million-degree fusion reaction that is magnetically suspended inside the stellarator’s experimental and unique shape. The shape of the casting is critical to the suspension of the hot plasma, preventing a meltdown of the entire reactor. The industry’s conventional inspection techniques were insufficient at detecting defects in the $100,000 coils. 3D scanning was necessary to ensure the coils were manufactured and assembled to meet their design intent. SOLUTION Our team worked
Custom Automotive Aftermarket Parts
SITUATION Aftermarket manufacturers are unable to fully take advantage of OEM CAD data because of the slight variations between the CAD data and the as-built part, especially for body panels. Furthermore, automakers offer their own competitive in-house brands as an alternative to third-party companies. This client, an aftermarket parts manufacturer, had invested in a touch probe system to obtain the surface data necessary for their line of custom fender trims. However, the amount of data the touch probe obtained was not sufficient to accurately represent the free-form shape of the fender. As their profit margin continued to shrink, the client
The Southern 408 Truck
SITUATION Based on and inspired by a ’54 Chevy, the Southern 408 looks and feels like an American classic. To help bring this classic street rod to market, the client partnered with an automotive company. Because the ’54 Chevy is a legacy product, there was no CAD data available to use for design assistance. The Director of Engineering at the Automotive company knew that generating such data would require partners with expertise in the fields of 3D scanning and reverse engineering. SOLUTION The client contracted our team to scan and reverse engineer the body of the truck and to capture the bolt-hole locations
Rugged Ridge Jeep Floor Mats
SITUATION This client is the premier manufacturer of Jeep replacement, restoration and accessory products, including the Rugged Ridge accessory line of floor mats. Currently, Jeep floor mats are either “carpet,” thermoformed rubber that fits the car, or “deep” all-weather flat floor mats that are not formed to fit. The client wanted to combine the advantages of both types of mats to create OEM-quality mats that are both formed to the vehicle and deep. However, they needed help in both capturing the exact cab floor geometry and in incorporating their design ideas into a manufacturable CAD model to create tooling for
Bronze Museum Frame
SITUATION The Declaration of Independence is one of our nation’s most treasured documents. Over time, the unique hand-crafted frame has become worn down, leaving its intricacies muted and details eroded. Manufacturing at the turn of the century was mostly done by hand, therefore there is no record of the original design from 1924. Several attempts were made to recreate the frame using conventional bronze sculpting techniques. The results however did not meet the standards of the National Archives and Records Administration. SOLUTION Our team was contracted to make a final attempt at the frame’s restoration. Pioneering new techniques in combining
Space Shuttle Custom Scanning System
SITUATION Maintenance and repair is routinely performed on the 40,000+ unique heat resistant tiles covering the Atlantis Space Shuttle. Tiles are usually repaired by removing them, filling the space with plaster, and then machining a new one based on the shape of the plaster. The new tiles must be made accurately to keep an airtight seal between them – any hot gasses trapped behind tiles during reentry could cause them to fail. The client needed to upgrade their tile-repair system to an automated, CAD-based solution. SOLUTION The client contracted our team to develop a custom 3D scanning solution designed to help automate
Radome for MC-130E Talon I
SITUATION Since its introduction in the 1960s, the MC-130E Talon I has been modified on a nearly continuous basis to incorporate more and more modern technology into its legacy design. One such addition is of a state-of-the-art radar system which would be housed inside a radome that was hand-crafted from fiberglass in the 1950s. Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) would have to be performed by the client to test a variety of functions of the radar system inside the radome. To perform CAE, they would need CAD data of the legacy part radome, which has never been modeled before for the
Airway Medical Training Product
SITUATION Medical training programs are the cornerstone of successful medical practice. This client, a developer of medical training products, lost its only supplier of the PediaSIM® airway, leaving them with physical models but no CAD data and no way to manufacture them. Not wanting to completely redevelop the product, they sought to reverse engineer CAD data from the limited number of physical parts they had left. The client made several attempts to reverse engineer the design. However, the internal features seemed to be impossible to capture with conventional scanning techniques. The detail of the hollow rubber esophagus and mouth would
NASA’s Boeing “Flying Laboratory”
SITUATION In 1994, NASA obtained a specially modified Boeing 757-200 to be used for aeronautical research. Named the ARIES, or Airborne Research Integrated Experiments System, the aircraft has gone through numerous customizations and modifications to earn its “flying laboratory” nickname. Over time, they realized that to maintain the ARIES as its premier research aircraft, they would need to modify the fairings. To do this, they would need much higher quality CAD data of the jet in certain sections than the CAD data they already had. Due to tolerance stacking, the previous CAD data could not be used to accurately model
Turbine Blades
SITUATION The affordability, efficiency and quality of the turboprop engine has spurred its widespread use in various industries since its entry into the market. This client is a turbine blade manufacturing company and they wanted to gain a competitive advantage by producing superior blades at a lower cost. However, they lacked CAD data for their blades, prompting their need for a reverse engineering solution. The FAA imposes strict standards on the certification of airplane parts due to the inherent safety risks associated with the use of faulty turbine blades. This client wants to be sure the blades they manufacture will achieve the