.svg){kind=small}
Reverse engineering · scan to CAD
Reverse engineering services
A part with no drawing, a worn tool, an obsolete spare. We scan it, work out what it was meant to be and rebuild it as parametric CAD you can edit, machine from or send for manufacture, as if it had been designed from scratch.
- Of the surface captured
- 100%
- From mesh to parametric CAD
- 4 levels
- Or a native feature tree
- STEP · X_T
Measuring it is not the same as designing it
Callipers and a notepad take days, yet still guess at the curves. A scan captures every surface in minutes, but a scan is a record of the part as it is now: the wear, the draft, the casting flash and the mistakes the toolmaker made. Nobody wants those in a new drawing.
So reverse engineering does not stop at the scan. Our engineers read the design intent back out of the data, holding the dimensions that should be round numbers to round numbers, the holes concentric and the faces flat. They model it in Geomagic Design X with a full feature history.
Reverse engineering: the services
Each one has its own page: what it is for, how we do it and what you get back.
How a job runs
- 01
Scan
Structured light or laser, at a resolution chosen for the smallest feature that matters. Shiny parts get a vanishing spray first.
- 02
Mesh and align
The scan is cleaned, meshed and aligned to a sensible coordinate system, so the model comes out square to the part.
- 03
Model
Sketches and features built over the scan in Design X, with design intent restored. The deviation from the scan is checked as we go.
- 04
Check and deliver
A colour map of model against scan proves the fit before you get it, in the format your CAD system opens.
What you get back
In the formats your team already uses. Ask if you need something else.
Polygonal mesh
Watertight STL, OBJ or 3MF. Enough to print a copy and the cheapest level.
Rapid surface model
Auto-surfaced NURBS as STEP or IGES. Follows the scan closely; good for organic shapes and one-offs.
Parametric solid model
Sketches, features and a history tree, as STEP, Parasolid or transferred live into SOLIDWORKS, Inventor, Creo or NX.
2D drawings
Dimensioned drawings from the finished model, toleranced to your standard where you give us one.
The kit we use
The same scanners, arms and software we sell, train on and support. Like what you see? You can buy or hire it too.
Artec Spider IIFine detail on small parts, 0.05 mmFind out more →
Artec LeoWireless handheld, full colourFind out more →
Artec Point IIMetrology laser scanner, 0.02 mmFind out more →
Kreon Skyline laserBlue laser on the arm, 600k points a secondFind out more →
INSVISION V-TrackTracked blue laser, 0.020 mm on large componentsFind out more →
Geomagic Design XScan data to parametric CADFind out more →
Artec StudioProcessing, meshing and textureFind out more →
FAQ
If yours is not here, ring 0330 229 0175 and ask for the scanning team.
Not answered here?
Ask the engineers who run the machines. We answer the same working day.
What do I get, a mesh or proper CAD?
Whichever the job needs. A mesh is fine for printing a copy. If you will edit the design, machine it or make tooling from it, you need the parametric model. We model it with a history tree rather than handing over a dead solid.
Will the model match my worn part exactly?
Only if you ask it to. By default we model what the part was meant to be: nominal dimensions, true geometry, wear removed. The colour map shows exactly where and by how much the model departs from the scan.
Can it go straight into my CAD system?
Yes. STEP and Parasolid open anywhere. Design X can transfer the model with its feature tree into SOLIDWORKS, Inventor, Creo, Siemens NX and others.
Can you make the part as well?
Yes. Our sister business 3D Printworx prints it in nylon or resin in the same building. Replacement parts other people also need may qualify for free scanning and engineering through Scan-to-Part.
Tell us what needs scanning
A photo, a rough size and what you need out of it. We will come back with a fixed price and a date, and if scanning is not the right answer, we will say so.
Whitchurch SY13 4AL