3D laser scanning is a non-destructive, highly accurate spatial data capture technology using fast laser and high-resolution photography, and Scan Hub has proven to be the expert in providing cost-effective, precise 3D laser scanning, CAD modelling and 2D fabrication documentation services that ensure accuracy down to the millimetre.

The Scan Hub team has more than 20 years’ combined experience in managing diverse and complex scan and documentation projects across Australia, with the skills and capability to effectively manage local and national clients.

Scan Hub chief executive Terry Robinson said the team can capture environments and objects efficiently and accurately with the latest scanning equipment and software technologies.

“We capture reality in 3D and we’re helping to transform the world into a digital landscape,” Mr Robinson said.

“The scope of applications for 3D laser scanning and CAD modelling is many and growing.

“The built environment and objects can be scanned with millions of 3D points in minutes and stored as a 3D point cloud with millimetre measurement accuracy.

“Traditional surveyors pick up hundreds of accurate points, we pick up millions of points that are millimetre accurate.”

Normal surveying methods can’t be used within a complex structural environment such as a coal processing plant or a ship’s engine room.

Manual measurements and fabrication documentation based on those measurements is full of risk.

Human error can lead to measurements being forgotten or missed and the drafting team may make assumptions based on the incorrect measurements, which lead to expensive mistakes down the line.

“By engaging a laser scanning operator like Scan Hub, you’re using technology that basically captures everything within the defined area that the client wants captured; and it’s brought back to the office so that it can be viewed in 3D, measured in 3D and drafted in 3D,” Mr Robinson said.

“Nothing falls through the cracks because if there’s any important areas in a particular structure, we make sure we got those highlighted to us by the client while on site.

“We concentrate on features to make sure we capture it from various angles to build up the complete picture in 3D for drafting.”

The data collected with 3D scanning also allows mining operations to significantly reduce costs overall – and reduce the risk of something not fitting or clashing during construction or installation.

“Scan Hub will save you time and money by scanning your fixed plant, objects, site, pipes, mobile plant or machinery with highly accurate 3D laser scanning,” Mr Robinson said.

“Our Australia-wide services team have the right tools and know-how to scan and model from 3D point clouds.

“We’ll help you avoid costly mistakes.”

Reverse engineering

Mining operations can also greatly reduce the risk of error-prone manual survey measurements with reliable 3D models for reverse engineering, documentation, design, reconstruction, maintenance and 3D visualisation.

“Scanning a complex structure and reverse engineering back to fully dimensioned “shop” drawings is nearly impossible to do by manual methods,” Mr Robinson said.

“Picture a coal processing plant which might be a steel structure four storeys high and full of pipes and valves.

“Going in and manually measuring with rulers, or tapes or laser pointers would take months and they would still get it wrong.

“Often we see measurement mistakes that get propagated all the way through to the fabrication drawings and then something gets made and it actually doesn’t fit – so it’s a very expensive exercise at that point.”

Scan Hub simplifies this process.

Recently the company was able to provide precise structural measurements of a client’s coal slurry tank feed structure that was more than 40 years old, with no reliable documentation available to recreate any components of the tank.

“Once our site work was done and the data collected to create the 3D CAD model, we created a 30-40 page fabrication documentation package showing basically every steel piece, every welding joint – all the things needed for somebody else to manufacture a new structure identical to the old one,” Mr Robinson said.

“Not only were we able to reduce surveying and measurement costs, but also the CAD drafting process and documentation.”

Mr Robinson said the 3D laser scanner doesn’t lie, and it doesn’t make mistakes about the dimensions, so there’s a much lower risk of making mistakes and the human error that occurs through manual methods.

“Our 3D laser scanning captures everything within the defined area,” he said.

3D scanning can capture existing structures, machinery, pipes, vessels, framework, plinths and highlight any potential clashes where new equipment may interrupt existing pipes and structures.

This is also a much faster process than manual methods and Scan Hub offers the smooth and reliable integration of existing conditions and construction progress into CAD/BIM software.

“While much of our work is in scanning a building structure, process plant, and industrial objects and sites for measurement and modelling, we also scan objects for manufacturing and reverse engineering,” Mr Robinson said.

“Through the use of laser scanning technology, Scan Hub captures information about any object in a point cloud file, while our team can transform the 3D scanned point cloud data into output formats that are the foundation for virtual walkthroughs, product and structural design, as built documentation, visualization, and analysis as well.

“We can use the data to create deliverables that are useful to architects, designers, engineers, draftsmen, maintainers and contractors.”

The turnaround is also far quicker than manual methods; the 3D scanning can be completed during outages or downtime and the 3D modelling work is done offsite.

“Most mine sites have very limited outages, and we can get in there and do our thing during fairly short time windows; as long as the client can clean the area up for us or have it in a prepared state for us to scan, we can then do our job quickly,” Mr Robinson said.

“The rest of the work is done in our offices and within 24 hours the client receives the scan data.

“Usually it takes a further two to three weeks to create the 3D model for drafting purposes.”

Mr Robinson said that Scan Hub prides itself in its expertise and accuracy through the entire process from start to finish.

“Our staff are Australia’s leading experts in 3D laser scanning and modelling,” he said.

“Our strong project management capability ensures we meet budget on time delivery for all our clients.”

More information:

1300 903 240
terry@scanhub.com.au
www.scanhub.com.au

The post Reduce measurement and documentation risk with 3D scanning appeared first on The Australian Mining Review.

The company’s extensive range of equipment, including tactile CMM, portable arms, laser trackers and laser scanners – combined with a complete array of support services available throughout Australasia – enables tailor-made solutions incorporating hardware, software and engineering for virtually any measurement of a reverse-engineering task.

Hi-Tech Metrology general manager, Craig Leckie, said the company can assist clients whether it’s a capital equipment purchase, support of existing equipment, or the provision of contract measurement services.

“We strive to provide world-class metrology solutions and services that enable our customers to achieve enhanced business outcomes in terms of quality, productivity and innovation,” Mr Leckie said.

Reverse engineering

Mr Leckie said the company’s clients in the mining sector usually look to either reverse engineer a product or inspect a product relative to the manufacturing principle that’s been put in place.

“Quite often they’ll have a component fail in the field, so that’s when reverse engineering is useful,” Mr Leckie said.

“They scan the broken or damaged component and that scanned data is put into a CAD system, a CAD model is generated and then the component or part can be recreated.”

Not only can the cost of new equipment from the manufacturer be prohibitive, but often they may not carry the stock or be able to supply it quickly to remote areas – and that’s where reverse engineering a part can save time and money.

“The cost of downtime, per minute, per hour is significant so the speed at which a client can scan and recreate the component is vital,” Mr Leckie said.

Beyond replacing failed parts, clients can also use scanning equipment for preventative maintenance, to complete a trend analysis of how the part is wearing over time and plan to change it out prior to failure.

“We have many popular portable products for mining applications,” Mr Leckie said.

“The Creaform Handyscan 3D, Go!Scan Spark, Metrascan 3D and Hexagon Absolute Arm series are all portable metrology-grade 3D scanners that are perfect for mine sites where needs for different resolutions and volumes vary.”

Hi-Tech Metrology’s range of products from industry-leading manufacturers like Creaform, Hexagon MI and other world renowned products means the company can supply the best solution for client’s needs.

“Our equipment can cater for just about every application – even inspecting a part to ensure it will fit before shipping it to site and stopping critical equipment, only to discover that the part actually will not fit.  Quality scanning equipment pays for itself time and time again by preventing unnecessary downtime,” Mr Leckie said.

“It’s not just one size fits all – we work closely with each client to determine the best equipment for each specific task.”

Contract measurement

“While we provide products to the market, not everyone chooses to purchase their own equipment – so we provide contract measurement as well as training services,” Mr Leckie said.

“Our services include both in-house and on-site measurement tasks, analysis, reporting etc, using an array of the latest metrology equipment.”

This can include textual metrology reports, graphical reports to 3D CAD, decimated and 3D surface data.

“Our clients are seeing the value of outsourcing the specialist task of dimensional measurement and collecting as-built information in order to document their facilities and existing products,” Mr Leckie said.

The skills, experience and expertise of the projects team at Hi-Tech Metrology enables customers to ascertain quickly and efficiently the key data sets for projects – allowing them the time and the resources to perform the ensuing analysis tasks, and if required, take corrective actions in order to improve their business performance.

Mr Leckie pointed to a recent example of an auto manufacturer that went from four weeks trying to develop a prototype, part to four hours with the help of Hi-Tech Metrology.

“The client can now scan the engine bay to create a digital image, so they know the exact dimensions and the exact location of all available mounting points for their aftermarket hardware – it takes the trial and error out of it,” he said.

“A new part can then be designed to fit these parameters and 3D-printed.

“When everything fits perfectly, that part can be put into production, saving weeks of prototyping work.  The same technology and systems can be applied to provide higher quality parts for mining applications in far less time.

“Our equipment is perfect for complex applications when it comes down to sub-millimetre accuracy.”

Oil and gas applications

The HandyScan 3D and Go!Scan Spark are also extremely effective for non-destructive testing of pipes.

“When you’re looking for corrosion in pipelines our equipment is perfect because we can scan the pipe for preventative maintenance and condition reporting,” Mr Leckie said.

“We can measure exactly how deep the external corrosion is penetrating and even ultrasound data of the internal pipe can be entered into our software and calculate a cross section using the two data sets.

“It’s also incredibly quick when you have kilometres of pipes to inspect.”

In addition, the data collected is entered into a database in real time, with absolute data reference points.  That removes the human factor and allows specific areas of the pipe to be re-checked or repaired as required.

Training and maintenance

Hi-Tech Metrology also offers a wide range of training packages and programs for new equipment installations as well as courses designed for on-going skills development and new employee training.

In addition, there are custom-tailored training packages on CMMs, vision systems, portable arms, laser trackers and scanners designed to meet specific needs.

“We can also recalibrate your measuring machines to ensure they remain accurate,” Mr Leckie said.

The company can even maintain the metrology software to provide customers with an easy and efficient maintenance system with which to access the latest versions of each software product.

“Our wide range of products and services mean we can solve your problem, not matter the size or your budget,” Mr Leckie said.

“We strive to supply the most cost-effective and efficient solution for our clients.”

More Information:

P: 03 9702 3911
E: info@hitechmetrology.com.au
W: www.hitechmetrology.com.au

The post Precision in everything appeared first on The Australian Mining Review.

The company has spent the past 25 years developing photogrammetric systems, culminating in its 3D Dynamic Measurement (3DM) Analyst software, which is now used all over the world by surveying companies, mapping organisations, geotechnical consultants, mining companies, universities, government departments, and many others, for applications as varied as denture wear measurement, dinosaur footprint modelling, geotechnical analysis, and aerial mapping with UAVs.

The remote sensing technology is unique in that the accuracy is highly customisable compared to laser scanning, where the accuracy of the equipment is fixed and pre-set at the manufacturing stage.

ADAM Technology managing director Jason Birch said almost any accuracy can be achieved with photogrammetry.

“If you think about making a 3D model of a $1 coin, you can take photographs where every pixel on the image represents a few square microns on the coin,” Mr Birch said.

“That is going to be far more detailed and far more accurate than if you photographed the coin from a kilometre away with the same lens and every pixel represented 10 cm.

“The accuracy of photogrammetry is directly related to how big the pixels are on the surface as well as the relationship between the camera positions, and the size of the pixels on the surface can be easily adjusted using the distance of the camera and the focal length of the lens.

“It’s relatively straightforward just using off-the-shelf cameras and lenses to achieve accuracies that even the best laser scanners would have difficulty matching.”

Because the technology is based on photography, it has a wide range of applications for mining operations.

“All you have to be able to do it have at least two images from at least two different locations,” Mr Birch said.

“If the scene is not changing, like a typical pit wall, then you can just use a single camera and move it around.

“If the thing you’re taking photos of is actually changing in real time, then you would have two or more cameras and trigger them simultaneously so you capture it at the same time in each camera and then you can create a 3D model.”

Aerial applications

ADAM Technology pioneered the use of UAVs for aerial photogrammetry in the mid- to late 2000s.

For mine stockpiles, using a drone or UAV that can fly over and capture images from above is far simpler and more cost-effective than other approaches.

For much larger areas, like exploration for a potential open pit mine, a conventional aircraft can be more cost-effective than a drone – but the technology is both accurate and efficient regardless of the areas photographed.

“For example, for a stockpile that’s 1 km long by 350m across, to fly that stockpile takes around 12 minutes and to process the images around seven to eight minutes – so 20 minutes in total to do a stockpile that’s a third of a square kilometre,”  Mr Birch said.

“It’s actually very fast, and the quality of the data is actually very high compared to other technologies.”

Mr Birch said the typical accuracy for UAV projects is between 20-50mm.

“For a drone flown at 120 m altitude, travelling at 36km an hour, you can capture a few hundred images in very little time and achieve 20-30mm accuracy without much difficultly at all,” he said.

“For something like a stockpile that is drawn down from below creating inverted cones, you really want a vantage point that is above it; flying over it to collect all that data is far simpler than doing it from the ground.”

A customer of ADAM Technology previously had been using a laser scanner for stockpile volumes, but with UAV photogrammetry they were able to save a considerable amount of time and money.

“It took them 12 set-ups with the laser scanner and three and a half hours in the field to capture the data, compared to about six minutes of flying the UAV and 10 minutes of processing,” Mr Birch said.

“Even after that the laser scanner still had to do three hours of post processing to try and stitch all the scans together to come up with the stockpile volume – whereas we had it 10 minutes later.”

One of the issues the process exposed was that stockpiles are actively changing, with material being added and subtracted during that three-and-a-half-hour window with the laser scanner.

“The UAV was able to show the stockpile snapshot at a particular point in time,” Mr Birch said.

“Especially with the UAV being able to quickly and easily acquire data – it’s quite straightforward with high accuracy compared to any terrestrial laser scanning method.”

Terrestrial use

For mapping a pit wall for structures for geotechnical analysis, the preferred photogrammatical method would be to stand on the opposite side of the pit wall with a camera that has a long focal length lens and take high resolution images across the pit.

“It’s a very efficient way of capturing images via image fanning,” Mr Birch said.

“When you take your photos looking out across the pit wall from above, it’s convenient to be able to take a whole bunch of images from one location to merge them together, and then process those as if you had a very high megapixel camera.

“You’re basically taking a panorama, except it’s photogrammetrically correct.”

The 3DM software then calibrates the images and the resulting merged image is accurate to 0.1 or 0.2 of a pixel – compared to consumer grade panoramic software which usually has large offsets between images.

“Quite often you get images that are 100-500 megapixels in size from each station, so it gives you the benefit of having a very high megapixel camera without having to buy a camera that actually doesn’t exist,” Mr Birch said.

“For terrestrial cases the main benefit compared to some of the other technologies is that not only do you get the high-quality 3D data, but you also get a high-resolution image that’s draped over it.”

This is particularly suited to geotechnical analysis where structural mapping and being able to see fractures in the surface is vital.

“[With the software] you can pick up points along the 3D image and create a feature that represents the orientation of that structure as it’s passing through the rock – based purely on the crack you can see on the surface,” Mr Birch said.

“Most laser scanners don’t have a camera attached, and the ones that do have a camera generally use something like a 20mm lens that results in very large pixels. Instead, we’d be using a 100-200mm lens, so we’ll get 10-20 times the level of detail in the image than what the laser scanner would be capturing.

“This means you can see much smaller features, much finer fractures in the rock than what you would see from the laser scanner image.”

Underground field work

In recent months ADAM Technology has added software to support third party stereo cameras for underground mapping, because many sites have already invested in the equipment.

“We wanted to add support for them because they were taking the photos, but they weren’t processing them in the software that they had because it was too slow,” Mr Birch said.

“We added support for that hardware so that users could use our software with the hardware – without having to replace any equipment.”

While the software is completely general and supports any workflow, ADAM Technology has designed its own equipment and a matching workflow that can be easily replicated, especially under pressure.

“When they’re underground normally they have to take the photos in-cycle – there’s somebody who’s at the face before them and somebody waiting to come in after them and everyone is impatient – so when they’re at the face taking the photos, they need to be able to get in there, do it quickly and reliably and get out again without having to worry that they missed something because they’ll never get a chance to do it again,” Mr Birch said.

ADAM Technology recommends having a single camera that’s put in four different locations.

“You take a total of 16 images in a specified configuration and from that you can process and create a million points per round in about three minutes on a laptop,” Mr Birch said.

“That data will be accurate to about 4mm and the pixel size on the surface is about 2mm and that’s usually enough detail for structural mapping; and thanks to the accuracy it can also be used for shotcrete thickness, surveying, and ground control, maximising the value of the effort put in to capturing the images in the first place.”

From A to Z

ADAM Technology prides itself on the ability to service clients no matter if they require the full scope of work or just a hand processing the data.

“Some customers only need a project done once in a while, so for those customers we can actually send someone on site to do the photography, and process the images, and deliver the final result,” Mr Birch said.

“The next step beyond that would be for the customers to get their own camera and do their own photography and send us the images which we then process and deliver the result.

“The next step beyond that is the customers who do it often enough that they lease the software on an ad hoc basis so they can do everything themselves.

“And the step beyond that would be customers who do it often enough that it’s worth owning everything and just doing everything in-house – so they buy the software, buy their own camera equipment and do everything – so we train those customers.

“Most customers are in the final category but we have customers of each type, and quite often customers start in the first category and gradually move towards the last.”

Regardless of the requirements, ADAM Technology can cater for customers across the whole spectrum of mining operations.

More information:
P: 08 9479 5575
E: Sales@adamtech.com.au
W: www.adamtech.com.au

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WYSIWYG 3D is an innovative engineering company that specialises in 3D measurement.

The company has built a reputation around the experience and knowledge it brings to the table – for every job.

It is at the forefront of the latest technology across many industries and specialises in the 3D scanning of mining equipment and processing plants.

WYSIWYG 3D was founded in 2003 as a multi-disciplinary firm of professional engineers, all who brought a wealth of knowledge and expertise in all aspects of 3D laser scanning, 3D measurement, and 3D inspection and analysis services from their various fields.

The company’s range of laser scanning technologies are a combination of both laser and structured light scanners, including portable co-ordinate measuring machines (CMM’s) which are capable of scanning the small, detailed parts, to terrestrial scanners which are used for much bigger items such as mining buckets, underground chamber volumes and washeries processing plants and equipment.

The company also provides vehicle mounted scanning, 3D printing services and licenced drone pilots.

WYSIWYG 3D business manager Leanne Rolton said that the company’s range of equipment means it can 3D-scan processing plants, mining equipment, and just about any other component on the mine site.

“We have the technical skills and more than 17 years’ of scanning expertise to deliver accurate and complete data from design to manufacturing,” she said.

“It’s all in the details – providing bespoke solutions for complex and detailed parts and environments.”

From a technical perspective, the team of engineers and their 3D scanners can do just about anything, and their techniques provide accurate data that is minimising the need for site visits, rework or downtime.

This data can be delivered as point clouds, 2D drawings or complete 3D models ready to be integrated into the workflow.

With accuracy within 0.3mm-2.0mm, and accurate data ready for design, inspection, and construction of 3D printing for marketing and prototypes, manufacturing can be done offsite and guaranteed to fit the first time.

This means installation time is reduced and costly mistakes are avoided.

“If you need to repair, alter or make a new part 3D scanning can make the process faster and more accurate than traditional trial and error approaches,” Ms Rolton said.

“3D scanning an existing part creates an accurate computer model while minimising the time the machine is out of production.”

So, when a client was designing a new attachment piece for its existing machinery, they called in WYSIWYG 3D to help.

Traditional measuring methods would take weeks of work and still not be able to provide the same level of accuracy as 3D scanning.

This meant there was a real risk of manufacturing incorrect parts which would cost thousands of dollars and waste a lot of time.

WYSIWYG 3D engineers were able to capture the roof bolter with three different scanners in more than 32 different positions and two configurations which ensured the complete coverage, detail and accuracy required.

Each component was remodelled and included all bolt positions which meant the new attachment could easily be designed and built to ensure it was accurate and that it would fit exactly – first time.

The CAD model was supplied in an assembly as separate parts which made the file easier to work with, and the files were delivered as a STEP model for importing.

Another satisfied customer was Sevoic Engineering, which needed its mining cutter head scanned, as it needed to re-lace the cuttings picks and change the spacing from 70mm to 40mm.Sevoic had had trouble in the past with service providers and could not afford to put $300,000 on the line, should the remodelling go wrong, so it reached out to WYSIWYG 3D to capture and remodel the existing cutter head.

With the information available, WYSIWYG 3D was able to use the helicoidal pattern of the picks – through a process called re-lacing – to change from 70mm to 40mm.

WYSIWYG 3D scanned the cutter head in its entirety and captured every single one of the more than 140 picks.

The picks had a slightly incremental angle that had to be kept, so accuracy was crucial.

The company was able to accurately model each individual component of the machinery, so that each could be manipulated independently.

As well as 3D scanning, WYSIWYG 3D also offers geomagic training, digitisation and probing, 3D printing, cyber scanning, visualisation, vehicle mounted lidar scanning and reverse engineering services.

It has the largest range of scanners Australia-wide, and the scanners have been used in everything from single teeth, coins, movie sets, cars, streets, aircraft, houses, mining complexes and machinery.

More information:
Phone: (02) 9153 9974
Website: www.wysiwyg3d.com.au
Email: info@wysiwyg3d.com.au

The post Precision paving the way appeared first on The Australian Mining Review.

That is why it is important for any business to ensure they receive expert advice and guidance when it comes to the selection of scanners.

It is important to look beyond the marketing brochures, hype and aesthetics of design in order to assess the functionality and purpose of a scanner.

Before purchasing a scanner, businesses should always request demonstrations to see the device in action, and they should obtain scan data from their own objects to compare scanners and software processing to establish a base for comparison.

Ideally, a full-service scan job is the best possible way to test a scanner.

This allows for full workflow results and time taken, rather than a test or demo.

As one of Australia’s first 3D scanner providers and operators, Qubic has the knowledge, the experience and the range to supply businesses with industry-leading advice and first-class service.

Qubic can provide complete solutions for hardware and software that can integrate with existing customer software, and can provide scan services to benchmark and compare scanners prior to purchase which ensures the solution works.

Qubic director Ben Tam spoke with the Australian Mining Review about some of the pit falls of uninformed scanner selection and has provided a hardware and software review for readers to make more discerning choices.

Marketing sells products, not facts

Often, the specifications in marketing material won’t tell the full story, as it will claim accuracy stats based on best-case scenarios and not take into account the ever-varying field conditions.

Manufacturers use different test methods, especially for terrestrial scanners, and the overall accuracy deteriorates when scans are built that are larger than the instant field of view of a scanner.

The error per meter is often greater than that claimed in the marketing material.

Noise levels in handheld scanners are not usually stated in specifications, meaning that high noise levels often result in poor resolution for the final scan and negates high-resolution specifications.

When presenting screen shots of 3D capabilities, marketing material often show point clouds  to make images sharp and clean, further hiding the noise and other issues with the scan data. Meshing data is the best way to assess scan quality.

Tracking and self-alignment of handheld scanners can be done in a number of ways.

Scanners can use shape or graphic/texture contrasts to self-align, or target stickers – black and white photogrammetry dots – can be used (preferably on flat surfaces as target stickers on curved surfaces can introduce additional errors).

It is important to note, however, that regardless of the alignment method, overall error will increase as larger areas are scanned.

What scanner for what job?

Terrestrial scanners are ideal for large zones and site scans where the accuracy of 1mm over a zone larger than 3m is required.

That could be conveyor sections, full-size trucks and trays or crusher and transfer chutes.

Often using a combination of scanners is the best way to achieve effective results.

By using large, terrestrial scanners for bigger zones and the handheld models on smaller zones, large amounts of detail and complex areas can be captured faster and more accurately.

Mr Tam said that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to scanners, and that each scanner has its own strengths and weaknesses.

“One scanner can’t do everything and guarantee accuracy,” he said.

“Qubic can tailor the ideal in-house scanning combination and even bring in external specialists.

“We would really encourage anyone to come in store, or at least contact us to discuss what they need from scanners and we can provide at a bare minimum some guidance and advice.

“It’s so important to look beyond the marketing material.”

Artec scanners

These scanners have fast software and can obtain high-resolution data with ease.

Both the software and the scanners can produce full colour 3D images for sales and marketing materials.

The software can import 3D data from CAD or other scanners in order to work with Artec scans.

The Artec Leo is the most portable Artec scanner: it does not require a computer for scanning, and the onboard screen means there are no cords needed to give cable-free scanning.

This allows users to maintain three points of contact at all times when climbing on equipment, and the resolution and accuracy is suitable for metal fabrication, wear analysis and brown space visualisation.

The Artec EVA is a medium-resolution scanner with a one-metre range and 60cm-deep scanning, and is ideal for fast, textured and accurate 3D models of medium-sized objects.

The Artec Space Spider is a high-resolution scanner that is perfect for capturing the fine details of components such as bolt threads and small machined parts.

All of the Artec scanners can be used in conjunction with one another to obtain the best results, and many mine operators and mine services have used the Artec scanners, such as Westrac, Harness Master Wiring Systems, WYSIWYG 3D, and many others.

Surphaser engineering grade terrestrial scanners

Surphaser scanners will give the highest level of accuracy and the lowest noise of any terrestrial scanner on the market.

It is used by both Airbus and Boeing because of its accuracy and resolution in comparison to survey-grade scanners.

It comes in various models from 2.5m to 140m range, and it is suitable for wear analysis and reverse engineering of large items with sub-millimetre accuracy.

Surphaser has also rebranded one model as the Artec Ray for use directly inside the Artec software.

A walk while you scan mobile system called SurphSLAM is also available. The SurphSLAM software was developed by CSIRO. – allowing operators to walk while they scan and cover large volumes quickly.

Geomagic DesignX software

This reverse engineering software is the most comprehensive on the market.

It can combine history-based CAD with 3D scan data processing to create feature-based, editable solid models compatible with existing CAD.

The software outputs history-based models directly to Solidworks, Inveontor, NX and Creo.

Geomagic ControlX

This is a professional metrology software that lets you capture and process the data from 3D scanners and other devices to measure, understand, and communicate inspection results to ensure quality everywhere.

Mesh2Surface

Mesh2Surface is an affordable solution for cost-effective reverse engineering.

It can convert most scanned objects into professional CAD models and extract geometric features with best-fit algorithms, draw 3D sketches directly onto reference mesh and build surfaces.

Coastal Engineering – a case study

Coastal Engineering and Belting (CEB) is a diversified manufacturing business located on the North West coast of Tasmania.

The company services a wide range of industries but specialises in hard rock mining and the wider mining support infrastructure with customers countrywide.

After consultation and taking the company’s requirements into consideration, Qubic recommended the Artec Ray scanner.

The company has been operating for six months with huge benefits seen in accuracy of quoting and reduction in rework on site.

An accurate 3D scan can be referenced later for any number of extra dimensions that the estimator may have neglected to run a tape measure over on site, cutting out any repeat visits and ensuring that quantities can be as close as possible allowing for a competitive quote.

The ability of the scanner to capture irregular geometry accurately is also making previously unfeasible jobs accessible to CEB.

Modifications to existing pipework such as the crossover install pictured would have been a nightmare to accurately measure angles and flange orientations by hand and re-work would have been almost guaranteed but with the scanner, new components can be drawn up which will accurately bolt up to the existing flanges.

Another example of this accuracy is a scrubber (pictured) which was duplicated with accuracy to the degree that the complete and painted new assembly was able to be dropped straight in onto the same concrete anchors that had held down the old unit.

This almost total elimination of on-site rework results in significant savings.

CEB provides a wide variety of service parts and wear consumables for various mining equipment.

Downtime on this equipment is costly to the operator, so if CEB is able to offer a component – such as rebuild parts for the bucket pictured – that are guaranteed to fit first time, the company wasable to save its customers time and money too.

For CEB, understanding of the capabilities of the technology has opened up applications that hadn’t been anticipated when the decision was made to purchase the scanner.

As an example, CEB was contracted to complete a scan of an underground mining truck that had been involved in a significant collision to check that the frame was still straight prior to money being spent on replacement parts.

In a similar vein, the scanner is able to be used in a QA application.

During assembly, if something isn’t fitting up correctly in a complex weldment, a quick scan overlaid with the original 3D model quickly identifies where the as built component deviates from the design.

More information:
Phone: (02) 9043 3205
Email: email@qubic.com.au
Website: www.qubic.com.au

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