Company 3D Prints Topography for Mining Industry

Canadian company MineBridge Software Inc. has developed a process to 3D print topography based on survey data and aerial photography. The data is processed by their flagship software package Muck3D before it is sent to a 3D printer.

3D printing service WhiteClouds 3D printed the topography of an area in Northern Nevada to demonstrate the technology.

“We’re using this particular model just to show clients what we can do with their data–we are just starting to offer a service to turn their 3D datasets into 3D printed models,” said Carlo Cooper of MineBridge Software Inc. “The ones we’ve had printed up so far have been very well received and we’re hoping to do a lot more of them.”

Muck3D is a 3D design environment used for geotechnical and mining applications; for example, to design dams and mine waste storage areas.

WhiteClouds 3D printed the model on a ProJet 600Pro–a full-color, powder-based 3D printer. The model is 203mm x 198mm x 52mm and has 512 layers.