A manufacturer of automotive exhaust treatment components needed to procure a 3D scanner to assist in the design of automotive three-way catalytic converters. By utilizing a 3D scanner independently developed and manufactured by Hualang, the company obtained high-precision 3D data and, in conjunction with reverse engineering software, accelerated the development of new products.

On-site photo of the exhaust three-way catalytic converter being scanned.

1. As this three-way catalytic converter involves connections to multiple components, the customer requires a very high level of precision.

2. The converter is characterized by a complex shape, significant variations in overall contours, and numerous connection points; traditional manual measurement methods are highly time-consuming and fail to provide sufficient data accuracy.

To address the challenges posed by the automotive three-way catalytic converter—such as its complex shape, significant curvature variations, and numerous connection points—HOLON 3D technical engineers proposed a solution utilizing the HL-3DX+ 3D scanner for rapid, high-precision data acquisition, combined with reverse engineering software (to convert point cloud data into triangular mesh data) and mainstream design software for post-processing. The HL-3DX+ employs advanced technologies, including multi-frequency phase-shifting fringe projection, coded-target calibration, and fully automated stitching, ensuring both high scanning speed and superior accuracy. It captures high-precision 3D data of the catalytic converter—with an accuracy of up to 0.02mm—in just 15 minutes. The acquired data is processed in 3D reverse engineering software and subsequently imported into mainstream design software to facilitate the reverse engineering of the component, thereby accelerating new product development.

STL data model of an automotive three-way catalytic converter    

STL data model of an automotive three-way catalytic converter

Point cloud data plot of an automotive three-way catalytic converter.

Point cloud data plot of an automotive three-way catalytic converter.