There doesn’t seem to be much technology can’t accomplish. It’s really quite amazing. Recently, the US Marine Corps contracted with EMS to use 3D scanning technology to capture data about the Land Assault Vehicle or LAV. Five LAV’s in all were scanned to create CAD models of these vehicles.
The US Marine Corps initially approached EMS because they needed 3D models of their LAVs. These models were going to be used to develop simulation software and training programs. Initially, they were going to measure the LAVs themselves and make the CAD models from scratch. However, it was determined that this would be way too time-consuming and wouldn’t produce a quality final result. That’s when 3D scanning was brought on board.
EMS went out to the California desert and scanned five different versions of the LAV. They used both the Konica Minolta and Z-Corps 3D scanning systems to accomplish this task. They scanned both the interior and exterior of all the different LAV models. This allows them to get into every little nook and cranny of the vehicles. This would’ve been much too difficult to measure by hand and to reproduce by hand and import into modeling software. Once the scanning was complete, both the interior and exterior scans were combined to create a full 3D model.
After this was completed, the data that was collected was processed in RapidForm 3D software. This allowed EMS to create CAD models very quickly. These models were then imported into Pro Engineer CAD software. These models were used to locate where electronics were and had to be installed or modified. It also made it possible to create 3D computer animation renderings of LAV’s for simulation software. This made for incredibly realistic renderings that provided actually useful training programs.
3D scanning may seem like something out of the future, but it’s actually very relevant in modern day. It’s used for all different applications, the example with EMS and the US Marine Corps is just one of many. This technology made it possible to complete tasks that would’ve taken months to complete otherwise. That’s the beauty of 3D scanning: it gets the job done much faster, much more efficiently, and much more accurately.
If you’re contemplating using 3D technologies for your company, now is the time to make the change. You’ll definitely be happy with the result.
