Case Study: Parametric Snowmobile Engine

Reverse Engineering an engine to help University of Maryland Terps Racing beat the competition

Every year a select group of students in the Mechanical Engineering program in the A. James Clark School of Engineering at University of Maryland in College Park, MD compete in the Formula SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) competition. The FSAE competition requires the team of students to design, build, and race their own open cockpit race car.



The University of Maryland team, called Terps Racing, consistently finishes in the top 10 against 80 to 120 other school programs annually. Aiming for a 1st place finish in the upcoming races, the team is experimenting with a new engine design.

The small autocross cars, usually weighing between 300 and 500 pounds, typically run on modified motorcycle engines. But Terps Racing is experimenting with using a snowmobile engine for the upcoming 2011 races.

During the design phase for a new gearbox for this style engine, the students realized they needed a 3D CAD model of their snowmobile engine so that they could accurately design within the tight tolerances necessary to the mounting points.

Terps Racing approached Direct Dimensions for help with creating a dimensionally accurate 3D model of the engine to aid in their design and we were happy to help!

Here is a review of the major steps in this process:

Step 1) Using a combination of FARO's portable CMM arm and laser scanner, Direct Dimensions' engineer Michael Lent digitized the important geometric interface features on the engine. He then captured the complex casting shape with an attached laser line probe. The FARO system was a great fit for this project because it provides both a contact probe for high accuracy geometric features and a non-contact laser scanner for the complex contoured surfaces.



Step 2) By utilizing a variety of software, including PolyWorks, Geomagic, Rapidform and SolidWorks, the Direct Dimensions engineers quickly merged and modeled the 3D digitized data with the laser scanned 'point clouds' into a hybrid of a parametric solid-based feature model with the watertight complex NURBS surfaces. This file is readily usable within CAD software, such as SolidWorks for the re-design effort.



Step 3) This final hybrid model, which offered both the exact representation of the mounting interfaces as well as the accurate contoured cast surfaces was used by Terps Racing to design their 2011 car.

Get a ShapeShot at SIGGRAPH 2011!

This year at SIGGRAPH the photo booth goes 3D!

Direct Dimensions Inc. will demonstrate the latest version of ShapeShot at SIGGRAPH 2011 in Vancouver. ShapeShot creates a 3D snapshot of your face. Users can share their face with friends via the online ShapeShot Gallery.



Along with the launch of new ShapeShot hardware, we've added an online store to the ShapeShot web site. Users in the ShapeShot gallery can purchase products including jewelry, a bust, and even an Easter Island head customized with their face. Users can access the store through their secure account at www.shapeshot.com.

If you are going to SIGGRAPH, make sure to stop by The Studio to see ShapeShot in action.

Free Sample Data!

Every now and then we like to provide sample models for our customers and friends to play around with. This sample data is from the Surphaser Laser Scanner: No other 3D scanner produces such high quality dense data so quickly! Download sample data sets – the quality speaks for itself.

A Plethora of Patriotic Projects

Happy 4th of July!

At Direct Dimensions we've been lucky to have the opportunity to scan many important historical sites, monuments and artifacts in conjunction with the National Park Service and others.

Below is just a sampling of some of our more incredible projects:



The Liberty Bell / The Normandy Liberty Bell - DDI has had the privilege to laser scan Philadelphia's Liberty Bell on numerous occasions. The data we acquired during these scans has been used in several projects, including exact and modified replicas. In 2004, we were commissioned to help create a replica bell without the iconic crack to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the August 6th, 1944 D-Day invasion of Normandy Beach by Allied forces. Following a ceremony in Normandy, where the ringing of the Liberty Bell was heard for the first time in years, the completed bell was returned to the U.S. and now rests in Philadelphia.







The Lincoln Memorial – Two months after 9/11, Direct Dimensions laser scanned portions of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC for historical documentation of the ornate design. We were able to capture the marble sculpture of Abraham Lincoln himself, as well as the columns and engravings surrounding him. The scans were aligned together to produce an integrated digital model of the monument that can be used to exactly reproduce the original model.






The Maryland Statehouse – The Maryland Statehouse, built during the Revolutionary War and still in use today, was the site of George Washington's resignation as the Commander of the Continental Army. When the Statehouse underwent major renovations a few years ago, Direct Dimensions was called in to document the original brick of the Old Senate Chamber, where Washington once stood. The scans were aligned together to produce an integrated digital model of the room that can be used to exactly reproduce the original structure.



3D Animated Political Cartoons – Over the years at Direct Dimensions we have had a lot of fun working with renowned political cartoonist - Kal. We scanned his exaggerated clay sculptures, including George W. Bush, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama to help him create interactive 3D animated political cartoons.




The Marine Corps War Memorial – The Marine Corps War Memorial, also known as the Iwo Jima Memorial, is located outside the gates of the Arlington National Cemetery. We were asked to 3D laser scan and image this iconic memorial. The final digital model resulting from the scan data can be used to recreate the memorial or even to create smaller replications of this famous image.



Haven't had enough of our patriotic projects? You can read about more below:

Lincoln Life Mask featured project
Walking in Washington's Footsteps Featured Project
Crazy Memorial Featured Project
Tomb of the Unknown Solider Featured Project

Direct Dimensions Invited to Participate in the Studio at SIGGRAPH 2011

This year Direct Dimensions is excited to be heavily involved in SIGGRAPH 2011 in Vancouver (August 7-11). We have been invited to participate in the "The Studio", a special, hands on area within SIGGRAPH where 3D industry experts and conference attendees use the latest technologies to create new works, experiment, and collaborate.

Direct Dimensions' President Michael Raphael will also be taking part in a round table entitled: Scan – Model – Print: A Roundtable Chat.

Learn more about the Studio here.

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.

Direct Dimensions Employee Dan Haga Publishes Photography Book

At Direct Dimensions our employees are multi-talented! Modeler Dan Haga recently published a photography book featuring historic industrial facilities (which he is also an expert at digitally modeling).



Entitled Urban Atrophy, this collection of amazing photographs "...will take you to another world, a surreal dream where all the people just disappeared and left everything behind," says Dan. Urban Atrophy is available now on Amazon.com!

Project Snapshot: Iwo Jima Memorial

Coming back from the holiday weekend, we thought we'd post an image from a recent project where Direct Dimensions 3D laser scanned and imaged the The Marine Corps War Memorial.




The memorial, also known as the Iwo Jima Memorial, is located outside the gates of the Arlington National Cemetery. The final digital model resulting from the scan data can be used to recreate the memorial or even to create smaller replications of this iconic image.

We'll be talking about this project more in depth in an upcoming newsletter, so if you haven't subscribed to our newsletter make sure to do so!

Case Study: Scanning the Wright Brothers Propeller

Direct Dimensions’ 3D Laser Scanner Helps Recreate the Wright Brother’s First Flight



In 1903 at Kitty Hawk, the Wright Brothers took the first sustained heavier-than-air flight by a human. Ninety-five years later Direct Dimensions had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to laser scan one of the two original propellers from that airplane.

Direct Dimensions had been approached by the Wright Experience, a Virginia company that rebuilds historical airplanes, about recreating the Wright Brother’s first plane for the upcoming centennial celebration. This project would require a reproduction of these propellers, now famous cultural artifacts in two different museums.

The Wright Experience team needed accurate dimensions from one of the original propellers as originally designed by the Wright Brothers. Direct Dimensions was brought in to “reverse engineer” the complex airfoil shape in order to make an accurate digital 3D CAD model. From this data, the original propeller design could be analyzed “virtually” with advanced software to understand its performance, and then also be used to manufacture accurate replicas.



Well in advance of the upcoming December 2003 centennial anniversary celebration of this first flight, DDI engineers, along with our partners at the U.S. Army at Aberdeen Proving Ground, traveled to a major restoration facility for the U.S. Park Service in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. We brought along what were then the latest 3D scanning technologies - a Silver FARO Arm paired with a Kreon laser line scanner.

This combination of 3D technology and reverse engineering experience proved ideal for this very exciting project. The non-contact laser scanner captured the intricate detail and complex shape of the hand carved wood propeller and then our engineers processed this data into the final digital model.



We’re not sure who was more excited about the project: our engineering team for getting to see the original Wright Bros. propeller, or the Park Service conservation team for getting to see our fancy 3D laser scanner!



There are several reasons why this project was so intriguing for our staff at Direct Dimensions. For one, some of our engineers have an aerospace background and we work regularly on modern airplanes, helicopters, satellites, and missiles - all of which were derived from the Wright Bros. work. It is also interesting since the FaroArm was originally conceived for the measurement of a modern airplane component, called a thrust reverser. The project was also very appealing because Direct Dimensions performs many projects for capturing and documenting historically significant artifacts.

Direct Dimensions continued working with the Wright Experience team for several years and captured a dozen other original Wright Bros. propellers from 1903 thru 1911 in various museums and collections around the country. Most of these propellers were also reverse engineered and remanufactured for other Wright airplane model replicas. In addition, several of these propellers were tested by NASA in modern wind tunnels to understand the performance of these early designs.

Regarding these tests performed by NASA, Michael Raphael, founder of Direct Dimensions and one of the engineers who worked on this project, explains, "As we were told by historians during the project, by 1911 the Wright Bros. essentially perfected the propeller to some 80 percent power efficiency. Today's best propellers produce 85 percent efficiency. So from 1903 thru 1911, the Wright Bros. got it nearly perfect compared to our best engineers and powerful computers today. This is why NASA is trying so hard to figure out how they did it."



Direct Dimensions is proud to have been part of such a historically significant project using what we think will become historically significant technology. Over the years that have followed, we have applied this same type of scanning systems to such famous original objects as the Liberty Bell, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, many Matisse and Degas sculptures, and many more. Please visit our website to see a glimpse of this work and also visit the Wright Experience to learn more about the replica Wright Bros. airplanes.

Featured Project - Digitally Preserving the Lincoln Memorial

Preserving America's National Monuments

In honor of the Civil War Sesquicentennial we'd like to talk about a scan project that we were privileged to participate in: the 3D scanning of the Lincoln Memorial.



A few weeks after September 11, 2001, representatives from the U.S Government approached Direct Dimensions with a very special request. For obvious reasons, various agencies and organizations had suddenly become interested in documenting significant American cultural landmarks, monuments, and structures in case of similar catastrophic events. The group asked Direct Dimensions to demonstrate its developing capabilities for 3D laser scanning and digital modeling and they even offered up the Lincoln Memorial for this effort.

The DDI scanning team mobilized for a planned one day on-site demonstration on a rainy chilly day in late December 2001 for a broad audience that included high ranking officials from the National Park Service, the Smithsonian Institute, the Architect of the Capitol’s office, and the Historic American Buildings Survey.



Using a portable long-range spherical laser scanner mounted on a tripod, they gathered millions of 3D data points from nearly twenty different scan positions focused mostly on the front entrance area of the Lincoln Memorial and the main interior chamber containing the famous sculpture. During each scan, the system captured thousands of XYZ data points per second yielding a real-time 3D picture of the scene with accuracy to about +/-6 millimeters (0.25 inches).




During the next several weeks back at the Direct Dimensions facility in Baltimore, the team processed the raw scan data sets into a 3D mesh model using PolyWorks software. They also incorporated some of the traditional blueprint architectural records provided for the facility. This resulting 3D digital model ultimately included the front steps of the Lincoln Memorial, several of the front columns, elements from the main interior chamber, and of course much of marble Abe Lincoln seated on the marble throne.




To further demonstrate the potential and value of capturing such important artifacts in high definition 3D digital media, Direct Dimensions collaborated with the U.S. Army’s Advanced Digital Manufacturing group at Aberdeen Proving Ground to fabricate a 20-inch long scaled physical reproduction using rapid prototyping, or 3D printing, of this Lincoln Memorial model including the sculpture of Abe Lincoln. Making this physical model demonstrated the ability to not only capture the complex shapes digitally, but also that the artifacts can be reproduced physically using computerized manufacturing technologies.

Direct Dimensions is proud to have performed this project and has continued advancing its capabilities and technologies for accurately capturing such precious artifacts. Please visit our website at www.directdimensions.com to learn more.