Empowering Tomorrow’s Engineers with Metrology Technologies

Clarkson University is a private, national research university in upstate New York and a leader in technological education. As one of the many Student Projects for Engineering Experience and Design (SPEED), the Clarkson University Clean Snowmobile Team is a student-led initiative driven by a passion for sustainable product development. The team’s goal is to create cleaner, quieter and more fuel-efficient snowmobiles for consumers. The group works together to tackle complex design challenges each season, focusing on everything from emissions reduction to noise control.

"We constantly try to push the boundaries of snowmobile technology—all while preparing team members with hands-on experience in advanced engineering practices," said Joshua Segal, Rules Manager for the team.

Each year, the Clarkson University Clean Snowmobile team participates in the SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge, an engineering design competition organized by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). University teams from across the globe participate by designing and building snowmobiles that meet performance and sustainability objectives while also competing in a variety of events that test their vehicle engineering prowess.

The challenge: Manual 3D measurements compromised design cycle efficiency

As the students worked on enhancing a snowmobile’s chassis, the Clarkson team encountered several challenges that slowed down their design and testing processes. The intricate surfaces within the chassis made it difficult to capture accurate 3D measurements. Without precise digital models, the team had to resort to physically mocking up parts, a process that was both time-consuming and prone to errors.

"Some areas we wanted to design in and around were hard to get to without taking apart the snowmobile completely," Joshua explained. This manual approach increased the risk of damaging vital parts and delayed the entire design cycle, consuming resources that could have been better allocated to other areas of the project. In addition, frequent disassembly of the snowmobile increased the likelihood of part failures, which could compromise the snowmobile’s performance.

The turning point came when the team realized they could no longer afford to rely on manual methods. "We had used 3D modelling in SolidWorks for past projects—and we quickly saw that our new chassis design would benefit immensely from accurate 3D scans," Joshua noted. “We decided it was time to look for a metrology solution that could help us with complex parts and accelerate our design and prototyping processes.

“We wanted to invest in a 3D scanning technology that would provide highly accurate scans of parts that couldn’t move within the chassis. Another big draw was the speed and simplicity of the 3D scanner,” he added.

The solution: Creaform’s easy-to-use 3D scanning tech eliminates design obstacles

After evaluating various technologies, the Clarkson team opted for Creaform and the company’s HandySCAN MAX™|Elite metrology-grade 3D scanner for large parts, MetraSCAN 3D scanner and portable CMM, and VXmodel scan-to-CAD software module.

Implementing the new technologies involved the team travelling to Creaform’s headquarters in Québec City, where they received a comprehensive introduction to each 3D scanning solution. Creaform’s application engineers worked closely with the team, offering hands-on guidance and detailed instructions for a smooth onboarding process. "Creaform’s engineers were phenomenal, talking us through the entire 3D scanning workflow with expertise and patience," Joshua recalled.

Creaform’s engineers demonstrated various 3D scanning techniques during this session and explained how to troubleshoot common issues. Larger parts of the chassis were scanned with the HandySCAN MAX™|Elite, while the MetraSCAN 3D was used for more detailed components. VXmodel was leveraged to generate SolidWorks-compatible files.

The impact of Creaform’s technology extended to the overall project timeline. With the time saved on each design iteration, the team could allocate more resources toward testing and refining their final product. This efficiency boost was instrumental in helping the team keep pace with the competition while advancing the snowmobile's performance. The streamlined workflow also gave rise to new opportunities for the students to experiment with advanced components like turbochargers and power steering motors, pushing the envelope of snowmobile engineering.

Looking ahead, the Clarkson Clean Snowmobile Team envisions Creaform’s technologies playing a central role in future projects. The 3D measurement solutions will be essential for quickly converting physical parts into 3D models as the students will test out gas-electric hybrid snowmobiles and add increasingly complex components. "Creaform has undoubtedly laid a solid foundation for the future of our design and modeling work," Joshua said. “Clarkson Clean Snowmobile thanks Creaform/Ametek for this great opportunity and looks forward to continuing our great relationship."