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Digital technology transforming design: point cloud processing in 2019

By Charles Thomson
December 4, 2018
Although point clouds and 3D models have long been used for design processes in limited capacities. This article explains how point cloud processing is transforming design in 2019.

Design benefits from iterative processes. This has long created possibilities for digital technology to improve design workflows, particularly where collaboration is concerned. Digital models can make it easier to introduce changes, view designs and compare designs to final products.

Point cloud surveys are effectively the flip side of 3D digital modelling. Surveyors use laser scanners to capture physical space and objects in precise digital detail. This information can either be used to form the basis of a design or cross-check final products with plans. Both options deliver valuable flexibility and information to the design process.

Although point clouds and 3D models have long been used for design processes in limited capacities, what is changing is the accessibility of the technology. The use of 3D point clouds to augment digital design has been opened up to an ever wider number of profitable applications as the technology stack has matured. Here, we will explore these possibilities, along with the technological advancements in multi-stage vector analysis for point cloud registration that have created this improvement in accessibility.

Delivering improvements: architects to engineers and fashion designers

When talking about design, it is important to establish that the changes delivered by point clouds aren’t confined to the ‘technical’ design domains — architecture and engineering. Technical designers were simply able to access this technology first because of high budgets and the disproportionate return on investment when operating with low tolerance for error and complex designs.

The increased affordability of commissioning scans, buying a scanner and investing in processing software is allowing for ever more casual use of the technology. Boutique clothing/costume designers, interior designers, set designers and self-employed architects and even BBQ pit manufacturers can all access 3D modelling software. In all circumstances, point clouds enable the faster creation of dynamic 3D models to empower alterations. More radical designs and methods of production can be embraced with confidence.     

Point clouds improve design communication and ensure quality

The impact of point clouds on communication are most apparent in construction projects. 3D models, allow teams working on any design process to collaborate easily. Where central database or cloud-enabled technology is used, changes can be made to a single file by multiple people seamlessly.

Point clouds impact this process in two ways. They first can be used to create the foundations of a digital model. They can then be used to track progress and update models based on developments. This not only allows for quality control, it enables enhanced communication via the dissemination of the most up to date information available in a widely accessible format. The same principle applies to any production-oriented design delivering products in multiple stages.

One of the greatest benefits this has to structural designs is the ability to embrace more experimental concepts. The ability to upload structural designs into physics simulators and experiment with new material prior to construction allows for the development of radically new structures and products with lower cost and less risk. The ability to scan output for cross-checks and quality control allows for the comfortable acceptance of miniscule error tolerances and enables greater freedom to designers to push the edges of accepted orthodoxy. It also increases confidence in the use of prefabricated materials for later complex assembly.

Point clouds are accelerating the use of 3D printing in design and production

One area where point clouds are particularly enabling designers to push the boundaries of traditional processes is the use of 3D printing. They do this by solving two of the major issues with this technology: guide plans and quality control.

3D models are needed to guide the printing process for 3D printed manufacturing. Point clouds can be used to create these models when looking to reproduce existing products. Scans of existing products can also be used to create a basic outline for further alteration. For test and research purposes, 3D models can be easily fabricated for any number of products using point cloud technology.

The growing accessibility of both of these point cloud scanners and 3D modelling creates opportunities for ever more designers to enter the market. This type of manufacturing is entering an increasing number of markets because of the quality control and model building capabilities delivered by point cloud technology. For example, about 30% of the parts on Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner are manufactured using 3D printing. Superficial uses of the technology have even started to become cost-effective, such as the use of scanners and 3D printers to make personalised figurines for as little as £200.

Point cloud impacts on architectural design

BIM (Building Information Modelling) is the focal point of these transformations within the construction industry. By providing architects, engineers and construction teams access to single-source-of-truth database plans, creative and flexible design processes can be embraced and more efficient construction methods developed. In fact, the precision of 3D modelling is enabling the prefabrication of critical building components off-site through the use of 3D printing and other manufacturing techniques. Critical to this is the ability to compare production output against planning in minuscule detail by using laser scanners and point cloud processing. 

Buildings, themselves, are being approached with this ‘build and check’ technique, using laser scanners to survey each stage of a construction project in order to ensure alignment with planning. These developments are poised to revolutionise construction and are being driven directly by the maturation of point cloud technology. Many design process, however, will benefit from the precision and iterative capabilities of 3D models and point clouds.         

Summary: Point clouds enable iterative design and the embrace of experimental materials and processes

Point clouds enable digital models to be used to their full extent. Rather than remaining theoretical design platforms, point clouds can be used to base a 3D model on existing physical objects and cross-check production with the design. 3D models are themselves a powerful technology for design that makes collaboration and iterative processes easier and more streamlined.

Point clouds allow designers to count on what they build and embrace incredibly low error tolerances in production. Output can be scanned and compared to designs in excruciating detail. Creating custom designs becomes easier because of the ability to start with a 3D scan on which to build a model. Coupling this technology with 3D printing makes the possibility of custom, mass-produced designs possible. The entry costs to creating the framework to start production are increasingly accessible.

Point clouds and laser scanners are not ‘new’, they have been around in commercial forms since the 1990s. What is changing is the processing technology. The slowest aspect of point cloud creation has always been ‘registration’. This is the process of stitching together the many scans required to obtain coverage of a scene or object. Traditional registration software demands significant manual review throughout a slow process that drives up the time investments required to produce any point cloud scan.

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The advance that has been made is multi-stage, vector-based software that allows for faster registration without the use of registration targets. This has increased processing speeds by 40%-80% and relegated manual involvement to review and front loaded tasks. Scans can be queued up for hands-off alignment, greatly reducing the manual involvement in the entire procedure. Designers of all kinds have been enabled by this cost reduction to transform their own processes and take advantage of point clouds to accelerate their designs to the limits of existing possibilities. Achieving these outcomes simply means partnering with the right surveyors and technicians to access the right point cloud processing capabilities.    

Tags: point clouds