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3D Laser Scanning Corrected Design Mid-Project to Save Design Time and
Improve Safety Shield Product at Global Corporation
 Company:
The
corporation is a global leader in supplying a full line of personal
protective equipment. This includes: negative pressure; supplied and
powered air purifying respirator systems; hearing, eye, head & face
protective devices; welding helmets, and air monitoring systems
including fixed and portable gas detection. Additionally the corporation
is leader in visibility and insulation materials as represented by its
well-known brands.
Challenge:
The
need for safety, security, and the protection of people working in
facilities around the world is increasing every day. The corporation’s
occupational health and environmental safety division was tasked with
developing a new face shield for welders. About half-way through the
design and prototyping phase, the
product development specialist and his team realized they needed to
improve the aesthetics of the design. The
product development specialist commented, “We weren’t happy with where
we were at. Subtle changes can make a big difference. The concept to
CAD and to rapid prototypes was not working, so a change had to be made.
We needed to make a major correction to the design in the middle of
project execution. That is why new CAD data was needed.”
 The
traditional design trial-and-error method of altering the CAD model was
too time consuming and expensive for the project’s targeted release and
budget. “We decided to take an approach like the automotive industry
does and make a clay model of the shield to address aesthetic concerns,”
said the product development specialist. A clay model would be quick
and easy to modify as feedback was gathered from the design team. It
also delivered the concept in a full size 3D format versus working with
more traditional 2D industrial design sketches which can be hard for
some people use in visualizing the true look. The model would increase
the speed and accuracy with which changes could be implemented in the
shield to bring the project back in line with the design intent. The
product development specialist remarked, “We had a window of opportunity
at this late stage of the design process to make the aesthetic
corrections we felt were needed to create the best product possible. In
order to keep the design going, we had certain goals we had to hit.”
Taking another cue
from the automotive industry, the product development specialist and the
team decided to use 3D non-contact laser scanning to create the modified
CAD model to move forward with the project. A co-worker who had
successfully used the method on projects in the past referred him to GKS
Inspection Services. Reverse engineering by non-contact laser scanning
is an ideal application for scanning a soft pliable material such as
clay because the scanner never touches the surface to distort the
dimensions or damage the fine details.
The
Solution:
The product
development specialist sent a picture of the clay welding shield mock-up
to Larry Carlberg, Service Bureau Manager at GKS, so that they could
discuss the feasibility of the project. The idea was to scan the left
half of the model, and from that, use the point cloud to guide the
creation of the new surfaces in CAD and mirror them to the other side,
thus saving scan time and insuring a balanced design. Also, the
corporation’s CAD engineer needed 3D curves created at some of the
surface intersections and orientated to an origin at a specified
location.
 With
over 25 years in the business, GKS metrologists have experience with all
kinds of laser scanning projects. Carlberg explained the approach he
would take, scan accuracy and density, and how to address the issues of
scanning a clay model. Carlberg explained, “Since we have good
experience in scanning clay pieces, we anticipated that the clay may sag
when repositioned to expose a critical area that otherwise would have
been missed.”
After a brief phone conversation with Carlberg, the product development
specialist delivered the modified clay shield with half the part finely
sculpted to the GKS Inspection service bureau. The GKS technician
performed the scan and produced the
ASCII point data
and a surface model exported in STEP format a
few hours later. The product development specialist found 3D
laser scanning to be “a phenomenal tool.”
Scanning was set
up to capture the left side with the details defined and just past the
centerline of the part. “This data allowed us to model the geometry and
mirror about the centerline,” said Carlberg. Because the laser scanning
system projects a line of laser light onto surfaces while cameras
continuously triangulate the changing distance and profile of the laser
line as it sweeps along, the problem of missing data on an irregularly
shaped surface is eliminated. The laser line moves back and forth until
the complete part is scanned. The system measures fine details and
captures complex freeform geometry so that the object can be exactly
replicated. Laser scanners measure articles quickly, picking up tens of
thousands of points per second, and generating huge numbers of data
points without the need for templates or fixtures.
 Carlberg
used the RPS-450 laser on the Surveyor 3500 equipped with a heavy-duty
rotary stage. This combination of equipment allowed him to quickly and
accurately digitize all the surfaces required for the project, including
those that might have been missed due to the sagging of the clay model.
Reference features were used to align the assembly since the clay was
pliable. When the scanning was complete, Carlberg used editing tools
available in Geomagic Studio processing software to avoid double layers
in the scan data that may have occurred because of the sagging. Double
layers in the scan data would have resulted in errors on the surfaces.
“The scan setup
was very successful in capturing the surfaces needed, which included the
datum features of the reference part,” continued Carlberg. “We can
replicate organic geometry very precisely because of the highly accurate
scan data itself and the software used to preserves this accuracy. Our
knowledge of the best solutions for the unique challenges presented in
this scan job distinguishes us from our competitors.”
Results:
The product
development specialist had the complete scan data and CAD model of the
redesigned face shield in a few hour. Once he went over the data with
his CAD engineer, he requested some additional files his group needed to
complete their requirements. Within 24 hours of initial contact, the
corporate team had the CAD data of the redesigned shield with the key
points and features. From there, the product designers could finalize
the design in 3D CAD which would be used directly to cut the molds for
the face shield.
 “We
definitely cut our time and costs with laser scanning,” commented the
product development specialist. “The traditional trial-and-error method
of CAD iterations is expensive and takes much more time. I estimate we
saved from $3000-$5000 in CAD modeling time by using GKS and 3D laser
scanning instead.”
The
face shield redesign was required due to aesthetic considerations, so
details were of utmost importance and 3D laser scan data is
intrinsically very accurate and detailed. The subtleties were not lost
in the CAD generated from the laser scan files.
The
excellent scan results were matched by the excellent service at GKS.
The product development specialist noted, “The service made it for me.
Larry was very professional and accommodating. He talked me through the
process and explained what I needed in terms of accuracy and detail. He
got this project through the service bureau right away. The turnaround
time was just a few hours!”
 Within
two days the product development team had created a rapid prototype of
the face shield and was able to obtain confirmations from all parties
involved at the corporation. “With a major design correction coming
half-way through the project, it was difficult to stay on track and
within budget. For us, laser scanning at GKS was the creative tool that
got our program back on target time-wise and financially.”
As
the project drew to a close, the product development specialist sent his
thanks to Carlberg: “I
want to thank you again for working us into your schedule on short
notice. Our work with the data turned out very successfully and we got
our design and program back on track. Your assistance in this was
greatly appreciated.” GKS Inspection Services has added this project to
its growing list of successful services supplied to this corporation.
About GKS
GKS Inspection Services has been a leading provider of dimensional
inspection, 3D laser scanning and terrestrial scanning services for over
25 years. The company’s Plymouth, MI lab (Detroit metro area) is
accredited by the A2LA for Mechanical Testing and Calibration and
features numerous CMMs, vision systems, 3D laser scanners,
surface analyzers and other inspection equipment. GKS also has U.S.
offices in Minneapolis and Seattle and international locations in India,
Korea, China, Taiwan, and the Netherlands. The company’s metrologists and
engineers are experienced in the automotive, defense, electronics and
many other manufacturing industries.
More Information
For additional information about how GKS Inspection Services can improve
your manufactured product, save you money and decrease your development
time, call Larry Carlberg at
952-252-3432 or send email to
measure@gks.com
or visit GKS
Inspection Services’ web site at
http://www.gks.com.
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