3D scanning technology is widely used in a variety of fields, with the automotive industry being a typical example of such an application. Providing significant advantages in fierce competition among car manufacturers, 3D scanning can be applied throughout the entire vehicle production cycle:

The CAD/CAM College welcomes everyone to the course "Digital dentistry in orthodontics and orthopedics using 3D printing" featuring Evgeny Roshchin, doctor of the highest category, orthopedic dentist, orthodontist, Ph.D. in Medicine, author of thirteen patented methods.

Nowadays, 3D printing solutions are of great interest for companies of any profile. According to experts, by 2025, the global market for additive technologies will be worth $32 billion, and by 2030, it will be $60 billion. 3D printing is actively used for the creation of art modes, in the automotive industry, construction, film industry, and even in the field of fashion. Printing technologies are especially relevant in healthcare — not only as visual aids for future physicians but also for the treatment of various diseases. Many of the latest advances in medical science have been made thanks to 3D printing, and in the foreseeable future, artificial organs and even medicines can be created by means of these technologies. Let's take a look at how 3D modeling and 3D printing help companies achieve great results with relatively small investments.

CreatBot is a 3D printer manufacturer based in China. The CreatBot D600 is one of their most successful devices. This 3D printer can work with various materials, including demanding ones. It offers industrial-grade quality, high level of precision and large-scale 3D printing.

The newer version, the D600 Pro, was developed and released later, in 2018 (the original D600 has been available since 2016). It’s designed to work with an even wider range of materials, including Nylon and polycarbonate. 

Both versions feature a massive build volume of 600 x 600 x 600 mm and dual extrusion.

On the stand of the Samara National Research University named after academician Korolev, there are a number of interesting developments, including a mock-up of the AIST-3 satellite and parts of aircraft gas turbine engines obtained using 3D printing technologies.

Stavropol-based Russian company Smart Build launched an open contest of small architectural forms. The winning project will be brought to life with an in-house developed constructional 3D printer.

Eco-friendly invisible car film is a thermoplastic urethane, often self-healing film that is applied to the painted surfaces of a new or used car to protect the paintwork from stones, scratches, crushed insects, and minor damage. It is able to effectively resist natural oxidation caused by prolonged exposure to atmospheric conditions as well as protect the car from scratches and sand.

Recently, one owner of a BMW 3 Series wanted to apply a protective film onto his car but could not find any suitable product on the market. This prompted him to have the invisible film custom-made.

Film for protecting paintwork is divided into two categories: cut on plotters using PC files prepared in advance and cut by hand. The differences between them are as follows: for computer-cut films, the cutting process precedes gluing and is carried out in accordance with the data of the car prototype, with the fitting process requiring high accuracy; installation of hand-cut film is carried out in reverse order.

The biggest advantage of computer cutting is its safety. The hand-made option inevitably involves cutting over the paintwork and removing parts (for example, logo, door handles). During the process, the paintwork can get scratched, while computer cutting is relatively safe.

In addition, computer-cut films, which are delivered as finished products, can significantly reduce raw material costs and operator skill requirements, thereby increasing operational efficiency.

Despite the obvious advantages of computer-cut films, they often impose extremely high data requirements on prototype vehicles — meeting production needs can only be achieved through the availability of large, constantly updated databases. Thus, such films are not suitable for vehicles with non-standard body kits, discrepancies with the factory version, etc.

The exhibition stand iQB Technologies and TWIZE at the Expo Control 2021 event was a good way to see metrological 3D scanners in action. It was held at the Expocentre in Moscow, Russia. 

American engineer Dan Fritsche has built a fully functional model of a roller coaster (scale 1:35). The project took around 600 hours to design and model (in Fusion 360) and around 800 more to 3D print, and this is without taking post-processing and assembling into account. And here are the results. 

In the beginning of September 2021 Moscow first-graders could visit 17 educational places. Those who participate in the ‘First Grade September’ event will gain knowledge about relevant professions, will visit the programming and 3D modeling courses and will find out more about AR/VR technologies and robotics (you can learn more about educational robotics here).

Today, we will talk about the major trends that have had the most significant impact on the development of robotics as well as dwell upon what has been new in the world of modern robots in recent years.

Popularization of robotics

Nowadays robotics is widely used in manifold industries, its significance is well understood in financial circles, and it is popularized by the media. Efficiency, reliability, low error rates, and high productivity are the hallmarks of today's automation, with modern robotic arms becoming ever more widespread.

Over the past years, special sections on robotics have appeared in major world publications, including The Economist, The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, and many others. In addition, many financial institutions and consulting firms such as McKinsey and Deloitte issue ad hoc reports on modern manufacturing technologies, their impact on industry, job creation, and employment in general.

Top Systems participated in both the science-business part and exhibition side of things of the forum. The company presented their PLM-solution for digital transition of enterprises. The T-FLEX PLM (covers (CAD/CAM/CAE/CAPP/PDM/CRM/PM/MDM/RM) is a compelling and relevant solution that can work even with the defense industry. 

Autodesk presented new capabilities of its Fusion 360 software, as well as a whole package of solutions for designers, engineers and manufacturers. The company also how these abilities can be utilized for faster and collaborative production. The improvements allow Autodesk to equip engineers, designers, manufacturers and innovators with modern tools needed for solving current issues. 

Instead of desktop 3D printers, such as Raise3D E2, today we will talk about a metal 3D printer. Chinese company Farsoon offers the FS273M additive manufacturing system that works with laser powders. It’s a modernized version of the FS271M LPBF (Laser Powder Bed Fusion) 3D printer that is offered with one or two lasers.

Belgian FGF (Fused Granulate Fabrication) 3D printers manufacturer Colossus and Dutch material supplier colorFabb signed a partnership agreement regarding pushing high-efficient large-format 3D printing with the usage of foam granular polymers (We’ve written about large-format 3D printing before. As an example, read our review of the Modix Big-60 3D printer). 

Andreas Muller, 3D printing enthusiast, developed an open-source project that makes color printing with regular FDM 3D printers possible with the custom system of replaceable printheads and permanent color marker pens. 

German company AIM3D has announced the new generation of the extruders for 3D printing with granules of carbon-fiber and glass fiber polymer composites, as well as composite ceramic- and metal-filled materials.

VIAM (All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials) held the 7th international conference “Additive Technologies: Present and Future” on 7-8th October 2021.

A heart needs to function properly. pumping blood and getting rid of CO2 in that blood. Modern technology provides solutions for the doctors, sometimes with the help of 3D printing. Cardiac phantoms would be one example, since they can be used for mimicking anatomical imaging tasks. 

The use of 3D printing for making cardiac phantoms was recently described in the study called ‘Optimisation of CT protocols for cardiac imaging using three-dimensional printing technology,’ by Kamarul Amin Abdullah of the University of Sydney. 

It covers making a cardiac insert phantom, placing it inside the “Lungman” multi-functional chest phantom and performing a CT scan. The last step covers the use of algorithms for dose optimization. 

Phantoms are the solution to optimize and refine imagery, especially for CT scans. and evaluate the needed dose of radiation. The latter is more important than it sounds, since various studies show that radiation doses from CT scans have been steadily on the rise during recent years in both Australia and the US.

Since the CT scan technology is more widely available today than ever before, the level of radiation exposure continues to be a cause for concern. There are various solutions to reduce cancer risk during exposure, including tube current reduction, low tube voltage, other protocols, ECG-gating and Bismuth shielding, as well as others, including iterative reconstruction (IR) algorithms. 

The usage of phantom-based dose optimization methodology proves to be advantageous, especially for imaging of coronary issues, since basing studies only on real patients has its own limits. 

The All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials (VIAM) showed its own developments in the field of additive technologies, including a series of small-sized gas-turbine engines MGTD-10, MGTD-20 and MGTD-150. 

Reverse engineering of such parts can be done using 3D scanners. You can see some examples and sample deviations here.