Year

2018

Season

Summer

Paper Type

Master's Thesis

College

College of Computing, Engineering & Construction

Degree Name

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (MSEE)

Department

Engineering

NACO controlled Corporate Body

University of North Florida. School of Engineering

First Advisor

Dr. Juan Aceros

Second Advisor

Dr. Patrick Kreidl

Rights Statement

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Third Advisor

Dr. Peyton Hopson

Department Chair

Dr. Osama Jadaan

College Dean

Dr. Mark A. Tumeo

Abstract

Modern 3D printing technology is becoming a more viable option for use in industrial manufacturing. As the speed and precision of rapid prototyping technology improves, so too must the 3D scanning and verification technology. Current 3D scanning technology (such as CT Scanners) produce the resolution needed for micron precision inspection. However, the method lacks in speed. Some scans can be multiple gigabytes in size taking several minutes to acquire and process. Especially in high volume manufacturing of 3D printed parts, such delays prohibit the widespread adaptation of 3D scanning technology for quality control. The limiting factors of current technology boil down to computational and processing power along with available sensor resolution and operational frequency. Realizing a 3D scanning system that produces micron precision results within a single minute promises to revolutionize the quality control industry.

The specific 3D scanning method considered in this thesis utilizes a line profile triangulation sensor with high operational frequency, and a high-precision mechanical actuation apparatus for controlling the scan. By syncing the operational frequency of the sensor to the actuation velocity of the apparatus, a 3D point cloud is rapidly acquired. Processing of the data is then performed using MATLAB on contemporary computing hardware, which includes proper point cloud formatting and implementation of the Iterative Closest Point (ICP) algorithm for point cloud stitching. Theoretical and physical experiments are performed to demonstrate the validity of the method. The prototyped system is shown to produce multiple loosely-registered micron precision point clouds of a 3D printed object that are then stitched together to form a full point cloud representative of the original part. This prototype produces micron precision results in approximately 130 seconds, but the experiments illuminate upon the additional investments by which this time could be further reduced to approach the revolutionizing one-minute milestone.

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