All in the detail
Advances in technology never fail to amaze us. Every day advances help improve the way we work, rest and play and there is no better indicator of technical advances than those we are experiencing in the world of 3D printing.
Already the technologies are being used to assist professionals in saving lives, transforming the manufacturing industry and even in the battle against climate change. There really are no limits when it comes to 3D scanning and printing, with experts predicting that there are even greater developments on the horizon.
As with most processes however, the outputs are only ever as good as the inputs. The advancement in 3D printing of medical or complex automotive parts (amongst many other industries) is dependent on the precision and accuracy of the what’s going in, which is in many cases comes from 3d scan data.
There are a variety of scanners on the market, however the newer scanners, such as those in the Kreon collection, omit blue laser lights which can scan even the most reflective surface in its natural state and without any prior preparation. The laser scanners are now so accurate that they can measure and record objects to less than a fraction of a human hair.
Other scanners use a camera system to quickly and effectively gather data from two different directions simultaneously, but that doesn’t mean that one method is less efficient than the other. The right machine should be chosen dependent on the object being scanned, where a large building, a human body or an intricate working part of a machine. Here at Europac3D, we have a wide selection of scanners from easy to use portable, hand held scanners to more complex and high performance, ground mounted laser scanners or even full body scanners.
The success of the printing remains in the detail provided by the scanning. Accuracy is key in allowing a perfect 3D image to be printed. One such example was when a young boy tragically lost almost 50% of his skull in an accident, but through 3D scanning, a replacement piece was produced to fit the exact measurements of his remaining bone structure, helping him to return to a normal way of living. Without the detail and accuracy scanning offers, it would, quite simply, not have been possible.
It isn’t just the medical, manufacturing and automotive industries that are reaping the benefits of precise 3D scanning; at Europac3d, we also used scanners to provide an advantage to elite sports clients as well as greater customer experiences for leisure companies as well as museums and visitor attractions.
The opportunities are endless and our work extends from film to forensic, industrial to archaeology or medical and mechanical – all however help our clients achieve their ambitions. The success of all our projects are in the detail, and with scanners accurate to a fraction of the width of a human hair we’re excited to see what else is on the horizon for 3D scanning and printing…
