A DETAILED GUIDE TO REVERSE ENGINEERING FROM SCAN TO CAD IN SOLIDWORKS

Our partner GoMeasure3D created amazing article explaining why we need 3D reverse engineering and how we need to get most of it. From 3D SCAN to CAD model.

I created this detailed guide because I want to show you all you need to know about the SCAN to CAD process. Hopefully, this will help you avoid the mistakes I’ve made. It was trial and error that ultimately led me to come up with the best practices of reverse engineering.

Paul Motley

Common questions you might be asking yourself along the way from SCAN to CAD:

  • you use a 3D scanner to capture the physical object into a digital 3D model
  • export the scan data into an STL file in Mesh2Surface software
  • import the 3D mesh back into SOLIDWORKS as a guide for design
Mesh2surface - 3d Reverse engineering software

Common questions you might be asking yourself along the way:

  • What does this Scan to CAD process look like?
  • What decisions do we need to make?
    • Has the part previously been designed in CAD?
      • If so, what was the original design intent or process?
      • If not, what changes can we make to make the part better?
  • How does it work if I have a part with multiple components?
    • What are the critical components of the part?
  • What is the most efficient way to recreate the part while maintaining accuracy?

I’ll be answering all these questions here.

Preview of What I’ll Be Covering

I’ve created a video series you can follow along. It’s essentially a step-by-step guide to the entire Scan to CAD process. Along with these videos, I will highlight the takeaways from each step.

These are the basic steps of Scan to CAD:

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