High definition is surveying-also known as 3D laser surveying-is well known for the benefits that it brings to manufacturing companies. However, there are some manufacturing companies-typically small to midsized companies that still use traditional surveying methods in an attempt to cut costs. Unfortunately, using older surveying methods rarely results in lower surveying costs. It usually results in higher costs than companies would pay if they hired a 3D surveying service.

Whereas traditional surveying methods require prolonged involvement by the surveyor and commonly yield less than accurate results, laser surveying-also known as laser scanning-reduces the cost of surveying by offering accurate results in as little as one surveying session. When companies use laser scanning, they can view an object’s data results according to three basic data models: polygon mesh models, which are typically used to conceptualize an object; surface models, which are used to model the surface of an object; and solid CAD models, which are used to incorporate design intent and can be directly manufactured from.

Regardless of which scanning application meets your company’s needs, laser scanning can improve your company’s product quality, shorten its production cycles and increase its manufacturing efficiency. In many cases, long production cycles, low manufacturing efficiency, and mediocre product quality are based on nothing more than inaccurate data produced by traditional surveying methods.

The product defects that result from this inaccuracy remain hidden from the naked eye and are impossible to detect with analog and GPS technology. But laser scanning offers quality inspection modules, such as colormap deviation, cross-section analysis, and geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, that reveal defects that result from the following flaws, among others: thickness deviation, boundary deviation, reference geometry deviation, and virtual edge deviation.

If you have ever purchased a product whose inner workings experienced significant wear in a short period or a product whose covering, lid, door, or attachment pieces didn’t conform to their settings, you probably purchased a product that didn’t benefit from high-definition surveying. Products that contain the deviations mentioned above don’t always malfunction, but they do present as consumer-unfriendly products that can poison consumers’ perception of a certain brand, regardless of its future quality.

If this is something that your company can’t afford, then it’s time to take a look at how laser scanning can benefit your manufacturing process at an affordable price. To increase the quality of your products and the efficiency of your manufacturing process, contact a high-definition surveying company to hear how you can benefit from high-definition surveying today.

Building a car engine is a highly complex task that requires multiple studies. Studies are required to understand the behavior of the materials under heavy heat and pressure conditions. Studies are required to understand the movement of the fluids through the engine for optimization. And of course, studies are required to understand how much variation to allow during the manufacturing process.

The automotive industry is one of the leading industries in the use of tolerance analysis during the design phase. Automotive companies understand that tolerance stack-ups are required early in the design process to properly manage variations that will be occurring during manufacturing. But they also understand that manual or even Excel-based stack-ups are not sufficient for the demands of their design teams.

Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing or GD&T has been in use for many years and is playing an increasing role in the automotive industry. Whether based on the USA’s ASME standard or the international ISO standard, automotive companies are using GD&T to help properly communicate the intent of the design to the manufacturing facilities.

Many companies have final vehicle assembly plants located in countries and regions throughout the world. The costs of shipping out-of-compliance parts to an assembly plant on the other side of the world can be very high. To solve this problem, automotive manufacturers are using automated software to pull information directly from the CAD systems. Such software reads the GD&T from the CAD models, such as CETOL, CATIA, and Pro/e, and increases the efficiency and effectiveness of the design engineer.

GD&T and CETOL-type tolerance studies are performed in all areas of automotive manufacturing. Body in White and sub-assemblies also benefit from better communication and more detailed information available through the use of both GD&T and tolerance analysis. The connectors of the electrical system are very sensitive to manufacturing variations and benefit from these types of studies.

Randomization-based studies, such as those used in a Monte Carlo-based analysis, lack the precision necessary to correctly predict the behavior of an overall assembly. For tolerance analysis to be accurate, it needs to be performed as a statistical tolerance analysis.

In summary, to properly predict the variations that will occur when building complex systems in the automotive industry, proper use of Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing is necessary. The use of GD&T and tolerance analysis can decrease the costs and time to market in the highly competitive global automotive market.

Since their introduction in the late 90s, 3D laser scanning services have provided engineering firms with a way to collect precise spatial data of environments, spaces, and objects. Engineering firms use this data for numerous purposes, one of which is mechanical design. In this article, we look at six ways 3D scanning services benefit mechanical design.

1. Front-end engineering
   Front-end engineering refers to the “front-end” of a mechanical project, a time when changes can be implemented with minimal effect on project cost. Laser scanning simplifies front-end engineering by indicating problems such as warping, under-trimming, over-trimming, and performance surface issues. Engineers correct these problems by editing a CAD data model that contains an object’s scan information. Unlike drawings produced by traditional surveying methods, CAD models can be directly manufactured.
2. Retrofitting existing plants and facilities
   Retrofitting is a cost-effective alternative to replacing older machines in plants and facilities. Before the retrofitting process commences, the following measurements may be required: measurement of parts that link the existing technology with the new technology, measurement of other elements within the machinery environment (e.g., piping), and the measurement of accessible floor space within the machinery’s environment. Laser surveying can gather these measurements in a single surveying session.
3. Fabrication inspection
   Fabrication inspection is the inspection of fabricated parts, such as parts for bridges, road signs, and automobiles. Problems commonly experienced by fabricated parts include: warping, under-trimming, over-trimming, and improper thickness. Laser surveying identifies these problems through the use of color map deviation, which can show warping, under-trimming, and over-trimming; cross-sectional analysis, which can identify an improper thickness; and geometric dimension and tolerancing, which can track specific measurements across multiple parts.
4. Reverse engineering
   Reverse engineering projects that use scanning include, designing new parts to fit legacy parts; modeling high-performance surfaces; and redesigning parts to eliminate manufacturing defects. Laser surveying benefits reverse engineering by offering precise data that can be expressed in editable data models.
5. Interference checking
   Interference checking assesses whether design plans interfere with an existing design or are feasible in the first place. Some common concerns of interference checking are clearance and connection points, pipe runs, code deviation, and feasibility of construction.
6. 3D laser scanning services for conceptual designs
   Laser surveying allows engineers to model conceptual designs using three types of data models. The first is polygon mesh models, which are slightly editable and are used for visualization purposes. The second is surface models, which are editable at their surface and are ideal for modeling organic and artistic shapes. The third is solid CAD models, which are fully editable and can incorporate design intent.