Find your next pair of jeans with 3D scanning
On your mark! Get set! Start 3D scanning!! A bike manufacturer is using high-tech means to give the bike riders a bit more push with 3D scanning services. The goal is to stay on top of their game by producing high-quality cycling products, and to give their riders what they need to stay in the front. Racing today is competitive to the core, every factor about the bike and biker needs to be taken into account to get peak performance. This is especially so when it comes to racing and with professional endorsements. Bikes need to be light and streamlined.
Experimenting with aerodynamics
Aerodynamics means everything when it comes to racing. Racers need to be able to beat the wind, so that is why a lot of effort is going in to making the bike and rider as streamlined as possible. For this reason, the wind tunnel is often used to test the aerodynamics of the bike. In order to get a good idea of how streamlined it is, a person needs to be sitting on the bike. The problem is that people are not machines, and so they can easily get tired sitting the bike, trying to maintain the same position. This is especially so if there is a considerable amount of headwind. For this reason, instead of making someone sit on the bike for a whole day for testing the job is broken up into smaller segments to give the rider rest. Of course, this only means that the testing time is going to be stretched out for a longer time.
To try to solve this problem, scientists have tried mannequins. Mannequins solved the problem of getting becoming weary of sitting all day, but they still could not replace the flexibility. A mannequin does not bend like a human. The movement of the joins of a mannequin are not so smooth, and so it was impossible to get the same position as a real human. The engineers needed something better, and the solution turned out to be 3D scanning services. They needed something that could remain in position for a long time, and also have the same flexibility as a human. Using 3D scanning, they were able to find what they needed. All they had to do was put a guy on the bike for about 15 minutes and scan him in the position that a rider would be during a race. From there they could make a foam replica of the rider to use for testing. More interesting details can be found in this full article from Triathlon Magazine.
Video: “tu delft wind tunnel to gain aero advatage…”
Having 3D scanning services produce a model of the rider can now make wind tunnel testing a breeze. No need to hire a rider to try to sit there all day. No need to take intermittent breaks for the riders to rest. The 3D printed rider can go all day. It is innovations like these that keep bike manufacturers and other sports equipment manufacturers ahead of the game. If you are going to play, play to win, and look for ways to use technologies like 3D scanning services to do it.
