Constraint Optimization and Feature-Based Model Construction for Reverse Engineering

Reverse engineering techniques can be used to aid in the manufacture of spare parts when original parts inventories are exhausted. For mechanical parts, this process involves sensing the geometry of an existing part, creating a geometric model of the part from the sensed data, and then passing this model to an appropriate CAD/CAM system for manufacturing. Sensing errors and the modeling demands of modern CAD systems present serious challenges to the reverse engineering process. We describe constraints that can be used to simplify the process and aid in the construction of higher quality models than would otherwise be possible.