3D Scanning Newsletter - Summer Edition

Our 3D scanning summer newsletter is full of great stories!

Scanning Bronze Sculptures for Museums: Recently Direct Dimensions worked with museum curators at The Walters Art Museum and The Johns Hopkins Mind/Brain Institute to 3D laser scan and 3D print several bronze sculpture replicas for the groundbreaking exhibit “Touch and the Enjoyment of Sculpture."

Facility Scanning: This story is a great example of how we used lasers to capture and 3D model a complicated MEP space within an aging historic building for renovation into new modern living spaces.

Reverse Engineering Aging Aircraft Components: Digitizing and reverse engineering aging Navy aircraft cargo door seals extends the life of the aircraft.

Laser Scanning Race Car Seat: Laser Scanning and 3D imaging this complex prototype is a perfect solution for manufacture.

Make sure to sign up for our 3D scanning newsletter to get the latest industry news and cast studies.

Holiday Newsletter

Direct Dimensions' end of the year gift to you is a newsletter full of fascinating stories (and one recommendation for a newsletter you should be reading).

Reconstructing Caligula: DDI's expert modelers helped a team of international experts collaborate on the reconstruction of an important Roman sculpture by creating an exact digital recreation.

9/11 Memorial of Maryland: We scanned and modeled steel beam artifacts from the WTC North Tower to aid in the design of the recently unveiled 9/11 Memorial of Maryland

Documenting Two Historical Naval Vessels: We demonstrated the power of the Surphaser HSX and FARO Photon 3D laser scanners at the famous USS Constellation and USS Torsk.

Have you subscribed to LiDAR News yet? Direct Dimensions CEO Michael Raphael and many other industry experts provide regular articles to this newsletter and blog. We recommend checking out this excellent 3D industry resource.

3D Scanning Newsletter - June

In this month's newsletter we officially introduced the amazing Mantis Vision F5 Scanner.

You can read about how the F5 can be used for facility scanning, see a video of the F5 quickly scanning an accident scene, or download a product brochure.


If you haven't signed up for our newsletter yet, you can do so here.

3D Scanning Newsletter - November

This month we highlighted some great 3D imaging industry events that are offering the opportunity for you to give back and share your knowledge and expertise with others in our field. We attend, support, and often give technical presentations at these events and always have a wonderful experience!

We also provided a list of some of Direct Dimensions' favorite sites, forums and blogs about 3D scanning.

3D Scanning Newsletter - October

This month's 3D Scanning newsletter contains the following stories:

Utilizing 3D Scanning for Historic Preservation: The Druid Hill Arch restoration project is a perfect example of how Direct Dimensions was able to completely document a historical structure in a single day.

Parametric Snowmobile Engine: University of Maryland Terps Racing team needed a snowmobile engine scanned and modeled to help them compete in a 2011 competition

Maryland State House: Unique medium-range 3D laser scanner gathers high accuracy dimensions for historic documentation

If you haven't signed up for our newsletter yet, you can do so here.

3D Scanning Newsletter - July

July's newsletter includes the following highlights:

15 Great Projects Over the Past 15 Years:
In honor of our 15th anniversary this year, we picked out some of our favorite and most impressive projects. It wasn't easy to choose just 15 but we managed to pick out one incredible project per year.

Recreating the First Flight:
For this story we looked back at one of our first major jobs - digitize and replicate the original 1903 Wright Brothers' Propeller for the 100th Anniversary of Flight.

15th Anniversary Slideshow:
See the projects, people and events that have contributed to an amazing 15 years.

3D Scanning Newsletter - March

This month's newsletter includes:


Aircraft OML Reverse Engineering Enables Complex CFD Analysis:
When Texas A&M University Flight Research Lab needed to determine the suitability of a Gulfstream II for a critical flight-test program Direct Dimensions provided them with high quality engineered 3D CAD models that allowed them to perform complex CFD analysis to determine if the aircraft was a good fit.

Williamsburg Coffee House:
Laser scanning captures amazing details from the past during a historic reconstruction project.

Monumental Horse Sculpture:
Digital sculpture enlargement helps fabricate a monumental sculpture based on a clay model.

3D Scanning Newsletter - February

Case studies this month include:

3D Scanning Helps USA Luge Improve Aerodynamics - When the USA Luge Team needed 3D models of their sleds for virtual wind tunnel testing, they turned to the team at Direct Dimensions. Using a Konica Minolta Vivid and Faro Arm scanners, DDI not only captured the sleds, but also several athletes to create accurate 3D CAD models for each. Supported with high powered CFD software from the aerospace industry, the US Luge team and their supporters performed complex airflow analysis to minimize drag.


Giant Olympic Sculpture Brought to Life - One of our first 3D projects way back in 1995 was to use the FaroArm to digitize a sculpture model for the 1996 Olympics Games in Atlanta. The 3D data was required for structural analysis. Here’s the classic story about how we first applied an industrial 3D measurement tool to the fabrication of art, something we still do regularly today.

We also highlight the Surphaser HSX Spherical Scanner. If you haven't yet seen this amazing scanner, make sure to check it out. It is the only mid-range scanner on the market; with accuracy great for cars to airplanes!

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3D Scanning Newsletter - January

January's newsletter has been sent out and is also posted on our website.

Articles for January include:

Scanning the Matisses: By special permission, this story presents our work with museum conservators at the Baltimore Museum of Art on the origin of several Matisse sculptures. The story features many of the compelling images we created from our 3D laser analysis of the shape of the sculptures and included in the publication and travelling museum exhibit ”Matisse: Painter as Sculptor.”

Jersey City Reservoir 3 Restoration: Constructed from 1871-1874, Jersey City’s Reservoir Number Three is important both for its historical structures and waterworks as well as for its status as the site of a burgeoning urban eco-system. Direct Dimensions 3D laser scanned and imaged the Reservoir's structures to assist in the restoration process.

3D Scanning Newsletter - December

December's newsletter has been sent out and is also posted on our website.

Articles this month include:

How 3D Imaging is Changing the World: The last decade has seen some amazing advances in 3D imaging technologies, from the introduction of light weight, hand held systems to new advances in large scale scanners. With the technology evolving rapidly, we talked to our President and founder, Michael Raphael, about the current state of the industry and what innovations we can expect to see in the coming years.

VA Medical Center BIM: When Clark Constuction needed to include an existing building into a BIM (Building Information Model) they were creating, they turned to Direct Dimensions to help save time and money.

Football Player Digital Double: When tasked with creating a commercial for the AFL, Eye Candy, a commercial editing firm in DC, decided to use 3D animations based on a real person. Our team utilized many different scanning technologies and software to create a realistic digital double.

3D Scanning Newsletter - November

November's newsletter has been sent out and is also posted on our website.

Case studies this month include:

Reproducing a Rare Darwin Bust - In honor of the 150th anniversary of On the Origin of Species and 200th anniverary of his birth, the National Academy of Sciences commissioned a replication of a one-of-a-kind bronze Darwin bust.

3D Imaging Brings Robots to Life - 3D laser imaging technology helps rapidly create a digital CAD model of hand-sculpted robotic components for Hanson Robotics.

Monkey Skull Sculptures - 3D scanning of primate skulls helps artist create sculpture series

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3D Scanning Newsletter - October

October's newsletter has been sent out and is also posted on our website. This month we have some great case studies about scanning for documentation and visualization as well as some Halloween treats.

Case studies this month include:

Documenting Ancient Sculptures - Direct Dimensions traveled to University of Pennsylvania's Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology to document sculptures from their Ancient Egyptian Collection.

Archival Scan of Meteorite - The digital modeling team at Direct Dimensions 3D laser scanned the largest "oriented pallasite" meteorite ever found for archival and visualization purposes.

High-Res Human Skeleton - 3D imaging of a human skeleton helps a renowned medical illustrator create more accurate medical illustrations.

Click here to read the full newsletter.

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