Categories Archives3D Scanning

3D Scanning Technology helps preserve Neil Armstrong’s Spacesuit image

Neil Armstrong's historic Apollo 11 spacesuit has been painstakingly restored by the Smithsonian Museum, with the help of 3D optical scanning and CT scanning. The restoration took place ahead of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission launch and used technology unavailable when the Apollo 11 crew flew to the moon in July 1969. The spacesuits worn by Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin & Mike Collins have been kept at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC since their return, but time has taken its toll on the historic garments. The restoration work began in 2015, with the team beginning work on the gloves of the suit. X-ray images recorded the suit's condition and allowed the inner parts to be ...

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Bentley to use 3D Scanning in build of new 4½-litre Blower cars standard

Bentley has announced that it will build a new series of 4½-litre 'Blower' cars from scratch, using original moulds and 3D scans of existing cars. The new build of 12 matching cars will be individually handcrafted by a team of specialists from Bentley’s bespoke coachwork division, Mulliner. Only four original ‘Team Blowers’ were built for racing in the late 1920s. Now, using a combination of generations of handcraftsmanship skills and the very latest digital technology, the 1929 Team Blower will be the master example for 12 continuations - one for each race that the original fleet of four Team Blowers competed in. The Bentley Blower Continuation Series was announced by Bentley’s Chairman and Chief Executive, Adrian Hallmark, who commented: “As we continue ...

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CT scanning in quality inspection – detecting potential problems standard

Detecting potential problems in the quality and integrity of a part. Here’s an example from our partners at NSI, showing the uses of industrial CT scanning in quality inspection processes to detect potential problems in the quality and integrity of a part. In this case, a small battery has some visible damage to it, which indicates that there might be a potential fault. The case on this battery appears to be swollen with a dome shape to it; not something that you would ordinarily see with these products. This could be a symptom of a larger problem with the battery, which if undetected could cause the battery to leak or burst. Depending on the application the battery is being used with this ...

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3D Scanning Helps Optimise Marine Aerodynamics standard

Porta Performance has used 3D Scanning and other advanced technologies to devlop the most advanced race boat designs both hydrodynamically and aerodynamically. Scott Porta of Porta Performance undertook the challenge to solve the “unsolvable problem” which comes from an offshore racing dynamic. What happens at 100+ MPH when a catamaran converts from a boat to an airplane without wings? Porta stated, “Here’s the dynamic, the engines are supported by a plane of hard water coming from the hull on the bottom of the gear cases … only until the boat launches and flies. At that point, the engines become a thousand pounds of dead weight, the centre of gravity shifts, the bow elevates, and the rest is history.” Porta Performance’s scanning partner ...

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3D Scanning in the 19th Century standard

Excerpt from an article from Fabbaloo.com Whilst 3D scanning is typically seen as a modern technology, there is evidence that it could be a lot older than you might imagine. This idea of moving around a subject to obtain a number of different views in order to build up a 3D model is in fact not new at all. The “photo sculpture” process was invented in 1860 by French artist François Willème. According to Wikipedia: “A photo-sculpture is the reproduction of persons, animals, and things, in 3-dimensions by taking a series of photos in the round and using them as synchronized photo projections to create a sculpture. The process was invented and patented by French artist (painter, sculptor and photographer) François Willème in ...

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Benefits of CT Scanning for Aerospace standard

Excerpt from an article www.qualitymag.com Aerospace Inspection with CT Scanning Effective quality management has always been crucial within the aerospace industry. Faulty designs and poorly manufactured parts not only lead to wasted resources and loss of profits, but also jeopardise company reputation and can compromise public safety. The quest for quality has also helped push new innovations in aerospace. Whether that is through the greater usage of advanced materials like super alloys to increase aircraft performance and durability, or the adoption of additive manufacturing, enabling weight savings and space optimisation whilst allowing complex designs to be produced. Industrial CT Scanning for Aerospace Inspection Testing has always been a crucial step in the management of quality, but given the value of many parts, destructive tests ...

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Combining CT Scanning with Additive Manufacturing standard

Excerpt from an article www.digitalengineering247.com CT scanning has the ability to provide detailed quality inspection scans of 3D printed parts for many industries. This role in additive manufacturing supplements how CT scanning is already used in reverse engineering activities. Whilst 3D printing enables the production of parts in previously impossible designs, there is a need to inspect them, and that’s where CT scanning comes in. As 3D printing allows the production of complex internal structures, CT scanners provide a unique way to help quality inspect the accuracy of printed parts which will be used in production. Other scanning and metrology techniques are limited to only recording the exterior surfaces of the parts. “We see a lot of interest in printing components because ...

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Swansea University Use 3D Scanning to Save Sea Life standard

A marine biology project led by students at the University of Swansea has used 3D scanners to create full body 3D scans of dolphins, sharks, and large turtles. The 3D models produced enabled the design and customisation of tags which gather data on the speed and activity levels of the animal, offering detailed information on migration patterns and the effects of ocean temperatures on their behaviour. Swansea University’s Lab for Animal Movement (SLAM) researches marine animal life using state-of-the-art tagging technology and leading data visualization techniques. This is done to understand more about the lives of marine animals in the depths of the ocean, even when they are out of sight. Led by Lloyd Hopkins, a Ph.D student, SLAM have been focused ...

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3D scanning technology helps make prosthetics cheap and accessible standard

In Guatemala, a hospital is using 3D scanning technology to create templates for prosthetics. The affordable process makes access to 3D-printed limbs possible. Making a very simple medical prosthetic arm can cost $1,000 for the materials alone. But 3D scanning and printing can shrink the cost to as little as $4. In Guatemala, where some families might earn $50 in a month, one hospital is now using digital tech and other techniques to make prosthetics accessible for patients who couldn’t have afforded them in the past. When the hospital opened in 2006, new digital technology existed but wasn’t yet feasible to use. “A ‘portable’ scanner that took up your whole suitcase would be about $50,000,” says Brent Wright, a U.S.-based prosthetist ...

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‘Heart of Steel’ raises £500,000 to help fund lifesaving heart research standard

In less than a year, over 23,000 people have become part of history by engraving their name, or the name of a loved one, on to the iconic Heart of Steel. This has helped raise half a million pounds for the British Heart Foundation (BHF), helping the BHF fund ground-breaking research into new treatments and cures for heart and circulatory diseases, including heart disease, stroke, vascular dementia and their risk factors like diabetes. Standing at 2.4 metres high, the Heart of Steel is an art sculpture that has around 150,000 spaces for people to engrave their name, or the name of a loved one, for a donation of £20. Chrish Perera, Head of Field Operations at the BHF, said: “We want to say a ...

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