Automatic 3D design tool for fitted spools in shipbuilding industry

The objective of this paper is to show the initial research results obtained with an automatic 3D design software tool we have developed for spool fitting in the pipe workshop of the Navantia Ferrol shipyard. This software tool requires, as input, a CAD file containing the scene with the two pipes to connect, and provides, as output, a CAD file with the fitted spool design. The software detects the features of the spool, and a heuristic pipe routing algorithm generates the output by computing several routes and providing one solution that is near to the optimal one. This output design considers the characteristics and capacities of the manufacturing process, as well as the library of materials used in the shipyard, so it is possible to use it for direct manufacturing. The preliminary results presented here were obtained using real data captured with different commercial 3D scanners over a test setup