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EuroPac
3D was recently contracted to measure a staircase, for the purpose of
creating a 3D model of the banister rail. The file was to be used to
create a CNC cutter path for a routing machine to create the finished
banister.We set about digitising the staircase using a 3.6m volume measuring range Cimcore portable measuring arm and PowerInspect software. Measuring the steps and location points for the spindles and all other relevant geometry, the measuring software allows the user to touch probe all sorts of geometry such a cylinders, planes, cones, holes etc and digitise freeform 3D curves.
The 3.6m arm could just about reach half way up the stairs, after which it had to be moved to a second position to reach to the top. To perform this move EuroPac 3D used a method of ‘leapfrogging’, whereby a series of target adapters are measured in position 1 and re-measured in position 2. The adapters positions can be correlated back to the first position and therefore the operator is able to continue measuring in the original co-ordinate system.
Once all the measurements were taken the result file was exported as an iges wireframe model. This model was then imported into the customers CAD system where a full 3D model could be created and any subsequent CNC machining paths produced.
As a final process the customer was able to use a CAD rendering package to visualise what the final staircase, complete with banister my look like.