Understanding reverse engineering and its uses in modern manufacturing 

Technical drawings are an essential enabler of modern manufacturing. No matter how innovative your product, if you don’t communicate its design precisely and completely, it’s going to fail before it even leaves the factory. The standard today is to supply CAD models along with 2D or 3D digital representation, of the product to a fabricator who will print it, machine it or manufacture it using other operations. 

But what if you need to remake a product without a CAD model? It happens more often than you think. Train rails cast a hundred years ago that are now due for maintenance. A vintage car in need of repair. Turbines in gigantic hydropower plants that need to be replaced.  

In these scenarios you turn to reverse engineering. In manufacturing, this term refers to a process of measuring a physical product and building it as a digital 3D model. 

While the approach is as old as engineering itself, its modern measurement tools like 3D scanners and scan software that made it considerably faster, cheaper, and, consequently, a viable tool for smaller organisations. Today, most manufacturing sectors use reverse engineering, to build a digital inventory, to remake legacy parts, or to manufacture custom components.  

 What is reverse engineering? 

Reverse engineering is the process of deconstructing and measuring a physical object to understand how it works and how to recreate it. The object could be as small as a 5 cm electrical connector or as large as a helicopter.  Whatever the size, the digital replica needs to be accurate and detailed so that you can use it for remanufacturing. 

The process can be carried out using manual measurement tools, but, nowadays, it’s more common to use 3D scanning, scan processing software and CAD modelling.  

Broadly speaking, the modern reverse engineering process consists of two stages.  

1. Data capture 

Whatever the object you are working with, you need to extract as much information as possible about it before you transfer that into a digital model. To do this you could use micrometers, calipers and rulers, coordinate-measuring machines (CMMs) and 3D scanners. 

2. 3D modelling 

Once you’ve obtained the measurements, you need to convert it into a model or technical drawing. What this stage entails exactly depends on how you captured the data. If you measured with manual tools, you’re going to immediately replicate that model in CAD software. The process can be painstaking, lengthy and require several iterations of the prototype. 

3D scanning flips this script. While with manual tools you obtain one measurement at a time, a scanner captures millions of data points at once, in a matter of minutes. The output is typically a point cloud or a polygon model, so to use it for 3D modelling, the scan data needs to be processed. 

The bridge from a 3D scan to a CAD model is reverse engineering software, tools developed specifically to enable fast scan processing. That’s why it’s also knows as scan-to-CAD software. 

For more information please check out our dedicated resource, what is reverse engineering.  

Reverse engineering hardware 

The efficiency of reverse engineering is defined by the tools used. The most popular devices today are CMMs and 3D scanners. 

CMM machines deliver exceptional degrees of accuracy. Using a probe, a CMM records a series of XYZ coordinates across the surfaces of objects, building a 3D representation of the visible geometries of the object step by step. 

They do have some limitations. They’re heavy devices, usually mounted in place and difficult to transport around a warehouse or company if the need arises. That rules out being able to conduct scanning at a client’s site.  

Another tool frequently used are portable CMMs, commonly combining a hard, touch probe  with a non-contact laser scanner. The hard probe is either at the end of an articulated arm or is somehow optically tracked by another device with cameras and or a laser. The scanner can be attached to the end of an arm or could be tracked by a separate optical tracker system. 

If portability is of the essence, handheld 3D scanners are the way to go. These small devices use laser triangulation or structured light scanning to capture data very quickly. Since some of them don’t even require laptops or cables, they can be used to scan details of bridges while suspended in the air. 

On the other hand, fixed structured light scanners are usually tripod-mounted systems. They’re capable of scanning a wide range of objects from very small parts to an entire car. They may also be desktop systems that hold smaller, more complex objects in place for scanning. 

Finally, LIDAR scanners use light to detect details on small objects, resulting in high-resolution 3D images. Instead of measuring the angle of a deformed laser beam, it measures how long it takes a laser beam to bounce off an object and return.  

Reverse engineering software 

While 3D scanners provide the raw data, reverse engineering software transforms it into editable CAD models that can be analysed, modified and sent for manufacture.  

While it’s possible to model parts on top of scans in standard design software, that process is fraught with challenges related to speed and accuracy. Reverse engineering software addresses these issues in several ways: 

1. Ability to handle large data sets 

Scan data files can contain millions of data points to describe even the most complex of geometries. The drawback is the file sizes. Scan files easily reach tens or even hundreds of gigabytes, and you need modelling software that can processed them fast. Dedicated reverse engineering software is built to handle this much data, where some traditional CAD packages are not. 

2. Higher accuracy with automated sketching 

Most CAD programs require the user to hand-select points to form sketches or rely on visual approximations to guess where the sketches should go. 3D reverse engineering software allows you to automatically fit sketch lines, arcs, and curves onto scanned parts. 

3. Faster modelling with automated feature creation 

CAD models have hundreds or thousands of features describing every aspect of a part. Saving just one minute when modelling each feature quickly adds up. Scan-based reverse engineering software comes with tools that automate modelling operations such as 2D and 3D sketch, revolve, extrude, loft, sweep, fillet, shell/thicken, and pipes. 

4. Seamless data exchange 

Some reverse engineering software connects directly to other CAD software used to finalise the product design. Each feature of the design can be transferred automatically from one program to the other, while retaining a parametric model with complete modelling history.  

5. Quick accuracy checks 

With mainstream CAD programs, you often have to stop modelling and export the CAD file to another application to check deviation. Real-time feedback is the only way to analyse the accuracy of your CAD model on the fly during every step of the reverse-engineering process. 

Fastest path from scan-to-CAD 

Today’s market offers several solutions for 3D reverse engineering, some can be used only to model simple parts, others for complicated assemblies with a lot of detail.  

Hexagon’s Geomagic Design X brings the most extensive toolset. Users can extract complex geometry from a 3D scan in a few clicks with Modelling Wizards. To check that a 3D model has been rebuilt correctly, the Accuracy Analyzer compares CAD bodies, surfaces, or sketches to scan data in real time. Because it’s all done in the same environment deviations can be detected immediately. 

Once the 3D CAD is ready, it’s possible to transfer it to other software with LiveTransfer, a tool that ensures parametric models travel with their design histories intact. It provides seamless integration with major CAD platforms. 

Here is an excellent resource for anybody looking to get started with reverse engineering.  

Applications of reverse engineering in manufacturing 

While it’s not garnered the same amount of attention as AI or 3D printing, reverse engineering has quietly transformed manufacturing. Big players in aerospace and automotive were first to embrace it, and recent years have seen smaller operations adopting it as well.  

The most common applications today include: 

1. Reproducing legacy parts 

Replacement parts for older machines or systems are often not available on the market. This scenario is unfolding every week in mining, energy and the infrastructure sector. When manufacturers can’t buy a spare part, they turn to 3D scanning and reverse engineering to remake an existing one. They can even improve it. CAD models can be finalised in a few hours and sent for manufacture. 

2. Automotive modification 

The automotive industry has benefitted immensely from reverse engineering. With a relatively small investment, it possible to get a set up for designing and manufacturing custom car parts that enhance aesthetics, comfort and performance. This hardware and software setup is used in small garages and renowned motorsports companies. 

3. Tailored and one-off solutions 

3D scanning and reverse engineering is used to develop innovative solutions quickly. Bruce Power is a prime example. This energy company runs a nuclear power station where reverse engineering and 3D printing are used to make bespoke radiation shielding components for any high-radiation area they detect in the facility. The result – radiation protection that is more efficient and less cumbersome than standard led blankets.  

4. Digital archiving 

Reverse engineering aids in creating digital inventories of parts or systems. A US  car museum digitised its collection of automobiles from the early 1900s with this approach. Another example can be found in the maintenance department of French manufacturer Schneider Electric, where reverse engineering has been introduced to keep a digital record of machines. This digital archive helps preserve institutional knowledge about all the parts and tools in the manufacturer’s operation. 

5. Digital twins 

Digital twins are virtual models of objects or systems that are connected to their real-world counterparts. They allow manufacturers to test and simulate how the object would behave under certain circumstances, while avoiding dangers that come with real life testing.  

A UK 3D scanning specialist reverse engineered a bridge in order to simulate its motion during opening. Using simulation software, they successfully predicted the movement of the bridge with millimetre accuracy. 

Read more about how dedicated reverse engineering software supports product design.  

The cornerstone of modern manufacturing 

Once a niche approach reserved for major players in manufacturing, reverse engineering is moving into the mainstream. Hobbyists scanning a motorcycle part in their garage, civil engineers assessing bridge safety, and technicians digitising decommissioned helicopters, they’re all relying on the same process. Capture reality, digitise it, and act on it. 

This is more than just a trend. It’s a transformation in how manufacturers approach design, repair, and innovation. Often hiding in plain sight, reverse engineering underpins some of the most ambtious engineering projects as well as household name products.