In class this week, we learned about the capabilities of 3D scanning. I didn’t personally have the chance to make my own bust but saw others as they used an iPad to scan themselves. I would equate the process to a much more thorough panoramic photograph. The 3D element, of course, makes us capture the entire depth of the object being scanned. It was cool to see how easy it was for 3D scanners to capture everything in front of it. In class, we watched a video on Jay Leno who demonstrated just how easy 3D scanning can be. We learned that there’s even a low-grade 3D scanner for your smartphone.

The work with scanners reminded me of an idea that a friend and I had worked on. We thought it would be cool if we could capture our own dimensions and upload a graphic image of ourselves into the cloud. Then, as a Google plug-in or other web-based app, we would use our dimensions to view ourselves in clothing when shopping online. This could help shoppers find clothing that fits them more assuredly than the current method of guessing what will fit and returning the clothing if it doesn’t. 3D scanning could make this idea a reality, though there would be much more to launching a sound business beyond the technological capabilities.

That sounds like a project for another time so I’ll turn the focus to the project that our group is working on – the steering wheel attachment. It was our group’s first opportunity to work as a whole for some time, so we took the time to iterate on some designs that make the most sense for our target users. After downloading MeshMixer, we generated a design for a screw that would be a printed locking mechanism for the printed modular steering wheel clamp. Finally, we developed our project testing plan for our product. In planning, we determined who were specifically our target users in addition to what they would be doing in testing our attachment. Looking forward to keeping the ball rolling!