A few days ago there was a thread asking about using a probe to digitize a 3d tool path from a sample or model/mockup. This may be of interest.
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Price doesn't look too high for a commercial operation. [c.
5k$US]
Unka' George [George McDuffee]
------------------------------------------- He that will not apply new remedies, must expect new evils: for Time is the greatest innovator: and if Time, of course, alter things to the worse, and wisdom and counsel shall not alter them to the better, what shall be the end?
Francis Bacon (1561-1626), English philosopher, essayist, statesman. Essays, "Of Innovations" (1597-1625).
George, Scanning is a buyer beware scenario. if a sales man says scanning ANY object is "easy" "simple" or fast, hang onto your wallet. Scanning and converting data sets to Nurbs surfaces can be quite difficult.
Scanners output exterior data. Imagine having a scan guy digitize a casting with an inner cavity. You will be required tio split the part to make the inner portions visible to the beam. If using those snappy looking "hand held" units, well, those units are also not xray machines. The "hand held" unit still requires castings to be split, on complex castings, even splitting isn't alsways successful. Imagine a turbine type casting with a spiral inside opening?
On the weblink look at the software that is shown. You can't miss Rapidform for 25k, it is part of how they got those results. I use Rapidform products in my 3D scanning, nothing is automatic no matter what the seller claims. Even with Rapidform prepare to get an education just on the software, nothing to do with scanning but taking the data and turning it into Nurbs surfaces.
Scan data is never perfect, no matter what anybody claims. No scan package is a perfect cure all that makes data acquisition and data conversion a "snap".
If you or anyone plans to try 3D scanning, I suggest you take a year or two to become proficient, with any of these systems. Knitting "scan faces" together is different from standard 3D modeling.
fwiw, probe type digitizers give good results after many many hours of experience withthe unit and with positioning mechanical parts. What few seem to realize, and I defy any scanner company to prove otherwise, 3D parts with hidden ares are not scanable, they all have to be edited and rescanned from various positions.
3D scanners of any and all types are NOT X RAY machines. Any are obscured by walls, fins etc will remain unscanned until you reposition the part so that the feature you need is unobscured.
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