Škoda Auto uses ATTBLIME® sprays

The automotive industry is one of the most important sectors of the economy and is the source of many innovations. It applies new technologies in development and production to make production faster and more efficient.

3D scanning of individual parts and segments of cars and entire vehicles is now commonly used by all manufacturers. Converting physical objects into virtual form is already standard in the automotive industry. Automotive companies, like most manufacturing companies, require high precision, accuracy and reliability in scanning. They therefore use high-precision 3D scanners from proven manufacturers such as Carl Zeiss GOM Metrology.

Why do automotive companies scan entire cars?

Thanks to the model created, it is possible to compare the manufactured car with the original 3D model and to detect even very minimal body flaws. Another case in point are various advanced aerodynamic analyses, gap and flush, etc. The scanning process is used right from the production process and optimization of prototype car models to the inspection in series production.

When 3D scanning glossy parts and surfaces such as painted metallic bodywork or translucent surfaces and parts, i.e. headlights or windows, optical scanners cannot accurately capture the surface to be scanned. Therefore, a scanningspray or spray gun is applied to the surfaces prior to the actual scanning. 3Dees Industries represents ATTBLIME® scanningsprays on the Czech and Slovak market.

Škoda Auto has decades of  experience of using scanners   from Carl Zeiss GOM Metrology at several locations. In cooperation with the Test Car Quality Management Department at the Česana Development Centre in Mladá Boleslav, which is dedicated to inspecting machined, sheet metal, metal and plastic parts, subassembly models, car bodies and complete cars within the automotive industry, we have verified the applicability of selected ATTBLIME® products in the automotive industry. Automotive matting was performed by applying matting solutions with a spray gun and spray.

How was the validation carried out and what were the results?

• comparison with previously used matting agents was carried out when scanning a car with metallic paint
• a total of 2 spray products (AB6 and AB24) and 1 spray gun product (AB6) were applied, which are the most suitable from the ATTBLIME® product portfolio for car scanning
• the AB6, AB6-G and AB24 fully met Skoda Auto's requirements and are very well suited for scanning parts and entire vehicles
• the comparison group consisted of 4 spray products (2x AESUB and 2x REFLECON), for which an average price was calculated and against which the ATTBLIME® products were then compared
• the price of AB24 corresponds to the comparison group and is 76.2% of the average of the comparison group
• the price of AB6 is 56,5 % of the average of the comparator group
• the price of AB6-G is 27.9% of the comparison group average, i.e. less than a third!

Based on the results of a comparison of the quality parameters of ATTBLIME® products and the price of the previously used matting sprays, the management of the Škoda Auto Test Car Quality Management Department decided to switch to ATTBLIME® products and use them for 3D scanning of whole cars and individual parts.