3D scanners transforming the industry

Automakers, dealers and repair shops are increasingly deploying 3D scanning technology for a diversity of uses — everything from re-creating rare parts for discontinued vehicles to mapping entire assembly plants to restoring iconic structures.

Toyota is one of several automakers using 3D scanning and printing technology for projects large and small as it looks to introduce advanced manufacturing techniques to its plants.

"We believe that both 3D printing and 3D scanning will evolve beyond our imagination," said Stephen Brennan, Toyota Motor North America group vice president of vehicle production engineering.

3D scanning supports a wide variety of manufacturing and engineering processes at Toyota, Brennan said. Scanners are used to supplement measurements made by machines and to check the quality of parts vendors supply.

Toyota engineers rely on scanners to create digital twins of equipment — even entire manufacturing facilities.

"3D scanning technology will continue to advance as we break through the boundaries of hardware and software limitations today, moving us closer to a real-time digital factory," Brennan said.

In June, BMW Group said it plans to use 3D laser scanning technology to complete digital scans of its assembly plants by early 2023. Scanning will help create more efficient floorplans for the automaker's production facilities of the future.

"This opens up entirely new possibilities for us to implement both extensive new planning and smaller-scale remodeling of existing structures in a highly efficient, precise and flexible manner," said Michele Melchiorre, BMW Group head of production system, planning, tool shop and plant construction.

Ford Motor Co. turned to 3D scanning technology in its restoration of historic Michigan Central Station, which the automaker plans to make the centerpiece of a "mobility innovation district" in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood.

In 2020, Ford said it was using laser scanners to develop "3D models of various elements of the station" that no longer exist, helping craftspeople re-create or repair items such as "large, ornate cast iron windows, decorative trim and elaborate ceiling tiles."

As automotive-use cases for 3D scanning grow, the capabilities of the technology also expand.

"If you want to make a special part for a car, it's very easy to use the scanner to create the exact shape you need," said Andrei Vakulenko, chief business development officer for Artec 3D, maker of hand-held 3D scanners in Luxembourg.

That comes in handy for low-volume projects or single-need uses.

An automotive designer in Australia deploys Artec 3D scanners to restore old vehicles. Using Artec Leo, the company's most advanced scanner, the designer creates exact copies of automotive parts instead of measuring them by hand — resulting in improved accuracy and increased productivity.

"It's absolutely a new generation for the product," Vakulenko said.

While parts for decades-old vehicles can be difficult to come by, repair shops can use a detailed 3D scanner to re-create components and get a discontinued model up and running again.

Other uses include creating models of parts for the design process. Some automakers use 3D scanners to check the quality of parts of various sizes, including car seats, Vakulenko said.

Wireless scanners represent a leap forward for manufacturing, allowing companies to ditch 3D scanners that need to be plugged into a computer or laptop to function, which can lead to "difficult, even dangerous" situations, Vakulenko said.

"You have the scanner in your hand and the screen on the scanner," he said. "Everything is pointed in the same direction, and you're much more comfortable."

As technology evolves, Brennan said 3D scanners would become more critical for the auto industry.

"These tools will become embedded into our core processes," he said.