What makes a product truly innovative? According to us, the way it use technology and the universality of the users: that is why we call Scanfly an innovative product. We are talking about a 3D laser measuring instrument designed to fit on drones, land or sea vehicles.
The Italian 3D TARGET company involved us in the realization of Scanfly’s mechanics, in the early prototyping phases and then in the later stages of production. In a first step we checked the geometries thanks to a prototype made by stereolithography and nylon laser sintering. After we realized the definitive aluminum mechanics by CNC machining. The finished pieces were then treated with a special paint for EMI shielding (protection against electromagnetic fields interference).
3D TARGET (http://www.3dtarget.it) was born as a trading company and official distributor of non destructive measuring instruments, about 4 years ago it has created an internal division dedicated to the integration of commodity systems. A few years ago, responding to the many personalization requests, he decided to design a universal device that could finally answer everyone.
We asked Paolo Girardi, company administrator how the idea of Scanfly was born: “The knowledge of the non-destructive measurement industry and the proven ability to integrate existing systems and components on demand prompted us to seek a definitive solution. It was born a light and versatile product that, thanks to the many options, is suitable for research institutes, universities, design studios, large survey services and public administration”. So is the first product you designed? “It is the first product in the catalog. Scanfly’s hardware consists of products from which we are resellers, such as the Velodyne VLP-16 real-time laser scanner (used by most self-guided car manufacturers) and the 360 ° panoramic camera, it is covered by a mechanical for which Coesum supported us. The input and output data process works through our own software. “
How is Scanfly easy to use? “That’s for real! From a software point of view, it can combine in-time GPS positioning and instrument measurements onboard so that it always returns georiferous data, whether it is a drone, a land vehicle, or a backdrop. The LIDAR technology (a laser pulse to measure the distance) and the double return of the scanner allow, in the case of an aerial measurement, to discriminate the top of the trees from the undergrowth by obtaining automatic accurate measurements for both. Multiple scanner profiles greatly reduce shadow areas by speeding up road or cadastral mapping, with important repercussions also for saving in the broader sense. “
Scanfly is a multi-function product that is not a niche product at all, which is your market strategy? “We launched the first experiment at the Intergeo fair in 2016 (http://intergeo.de/intergeo-en/), after a year, we will be back with some new developments from our customers requests. The number of direct competitors is “limited” because we develop a 360° solution while keeping down the cost to the customer: we achieved good results from the foreign market so much that we are considering the possibility of developing a foreign distributors network. In Italy, the situation is not that exciting, but only because we are more reluctant to adopt innovative technologies, especially in the PA sector. “
Is there a sector in which you would like to join in the future? “Our future is still and without doubt Scanfly, we have to work hard to consolidate the product on the market and meet the latent demand. That’s why we create a dedicate website http://www.scanfly.it . For a long-term goal, I think to the drones industry, which presents some new challenges also linked to non-destructive measurements”.
We are confident that the new edition of Intergeo in Berlin (26-28 September 2017) will reveal important novelties; on our part, we will not miss the opportunity to thank 3D TARGET and wish Paolo Girardi and his technical staff a good job!!
