From Gaskets to Gearboxes
Older cars can be expensive and not easy to fix. Some pieces of a former car, range from a thousand to a few thousand dollars and sometimes more than that. Researchers have figured out how to replicate parts from classic cars using 3D laser scanners. This process is relatively cheaper than the original way of replicating a piece needed for an older car.
3D laser scanners have emerged in many different fields, and continue to be rapidly adopted from country to country due to the versatile uses. Implementing this technology in the process of making these pieces is called additive manufacturing, and more large-scale companies are adopting this.
What is 3D laser scanning
3D laser scanning is the process of taking thousands of pictures per second and collecting information on an object. In this case, it is being used to scan one part of a car to replicate. After this is scanned, the data is stored in the cloud for future use.
After the details are stored in the cloud, they can be downloaded in a partnering system that can then 3D print a replica of the original. This model can be used as a unique piece of equipment and can be created multiple times.
This technology not only helps produce pieces on a large scale but has been adopted throughout multiple areas. Researchers are using this technology to preserve history, and students use it as a study aid. It is becoming some of the most versatile technology and easily accessible.
How it works after 3D laser scanning
The process is used with a machine that spreads a thin layer of steel fillings in one container. After an object is scanned, a laser is directed by the partnering program, where it melts away pieces of the steel. This process is repeated over and over until the replica is entirely created.
This is a cheaper and faster way of creating pieces for classic cars to use. The process was originally a lot more complicated, time-consuming, and expensive for consumers to maintain. Additive manufacturing takes out the middle man of creating pieces and is a sure way for classic cars to run as smoothly if not better than the day they came out.
“‘From gaskets to gearboxes: scan it, draw it, make it’, we like to say. Laser scanning and 3D printing have so many uses, from enabling classic car owners to have a digitised record of their car from which body panels, for example, can be recreated after a crash, to producing replica parts in plastic as a pattern for a sand cast or simply to test fit and function.” –Alistair Pugh
The conclusion
As this technology evolves and advances, it will recreate and keep historical things alive, and that includes the revival of classic cars. Slowly 3D laser scanners are being implemented in unsuspecting fields, but all have had good results using this technology. Soon all consumers will have access to this technology, and it will be one of the wealthiest technological fields there is.
