Turning a Maserati Levante into a Hearse

Funeral processions can hardly be organized without the use of a funeral vehicle. The level of the event, the status and preferences of relatives influence the choice of the appropriate car model. Many will agree that the last journey should be accompanied beautifully. That is why in Europe and the USA luxury cars of premium brands such as Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, Maserati are often used for funeral processions.

The task: To modify the design of the Maserati Levante and transform it into a specialized car for ritual events.
Solution: RangeVision PRO, RV 3D Studio (formerly ScanCenter NG), Solidworks.

Summary: Specialists from the Italian company INKAY Technology Srl conducted a 3D scan of the Maserati Levante production car using RangeVision PRO and obtained the initial 3D geometry data of the car. The designers finalized the design of the rear part of the body in CAD programs and prepared the final 3D model of the prototype. The new parts were produced by casting and mounted on the body. Upon completion of the work, the specialists received a modified car that meets all the customer’s requirements.

To use a car for funeral needs, it needs to be retrofitted and equipped with everything necessary. Specialized companies are engaged in this type of work. The body of a regular car is being refined and lengthened. To create the necessary temperature and ensure disinfection, the salon is equipped with additional equipment. The interior is being finished.

Our partner INKAY Technology Srl, one of the leaders in the field of reverse engineering and product design in Italy, participated in the work on such a project. In 2019, INKAY was approached for help by Vecotras, a company specializing in the preparation and equipping of funeral vehicles. At that time, the company’s specialists were engaged in a project to modify the Maserati Levante car for funeral processions. INKAY was involved in the work on refining the geometry of the car body. To do this, it was necessary to conduct a 3D scan of the body of a production car, perform 3D modeling and redesign, produce matrices for new parts, produce parts and mount them on the body.

After all the nuances of cooperation and the work plan for the Maserati Levante project were agreed upon, INKAY specialists began 3D scanning the car. The work was carried out at the customer’s headquarters in Frosinone (Italy).
The 3D scanning was carried out in several stages:

1. Scan the entire body of a production car.
2. Scan the rear of the body with the doors and bumper removed to correctly copy the door openings and mounting points of the body parts.
3. Scan a manually created (hand made) prototype of a car with a new design.

The INKAY team scanned the car using a RangeVision PRO 3D scanner. "The 3D scanner PRO allows you to get a high-quality 3D model that is suitable for further work with popular CAD programs," says INKAY CAD designer Alessandra Freschi.

Gianluca Martini, the company’s technical director, notes that using a 3D scanner saves time and labor costs.: "It took 2.5 hours to 3D scan the entire Maserati Levante car. The whole process was handled by one employee. Saving time and resources is obvious. We believe that the scanner is the necessary equipment for design, production and quality control."

To avoid the negative effects of reflections from the paintwork during 3D scanning and to improve the quality of the data obtained, the body surface was coated with a matting spray. The scan was performed using markers and photogrammetry. This mode allows you to improve data accuracy and stitching speed when scanning large objects.

After the 3D scanning, the specialists carried out the initial processing of the grid in the ScanCenter NG program. INKAY post-processing specialist Nicolò Cavalca shares: "The advantages of ScanCenter NG for us are automation, speed and ease of use. The program has very powerful algorithms for building STL. There is a measuring tool inside to control the dimensions."

As a result of 3D scanning, the initial triangulated surfaces of the objects were obtained. The specialists generated STL files of the original car and the extended model.

After receiving the necessary 3D data, the specialists began to refine the car body into reverse engineering software. The designers of both companies participated in the development of the final design of the car.

• The specialists carried out a number of works:
• they fitted the serial body to a new elongated body;
• we adjusted the geometry of the body to achieve symmetry. On the elongated hand-made prototype, the body parts were asymmetrical.;
• fixed defects in the hand-made prototype body.

After the approval of the digital 3D model, the specialists designed a 3D waterproof — sealed (watertight) model in Solidworks.

The modified model of the rear of the car was made of wood in 1:1 scale by milling on a CNC machine. To avoid kinks, joints and roughness on the surface of the wooden prototypes, the specialists carefully treated and primed them. As a result, the surface of the prototypes was leveled to Class A.

After that, molds were prepared to create new polymer body parts. The peculiarity of the process was that only a few large parts were created as a result. Specialists installed new body parts on the power structure of the body very quickly. This technology has reduced the installation time by 40%. Thus, the company managed to minimize the time spent on the conversion and modification process.

As a result, the specialists received the final serial product that meets all the customer’s requirements.

With the help of digital technologies, Vectoras has reduced the time from the design stage to the delivery of the finished vehicle by 40%. The accuracy of the data from the Rangevision PRO 3D scanner and the subsequent creation of a high-precision prototype model made it possible to reduce the time for fitting and adjusting body parts by 85%. The company is very pleased with the results of the project.
After many months of collaboration with INKAY and using the Rangevision PRO 3D scanner in their other projects, Vectoras was able to fully appreciate the benefits of using 3D technologies in the production process and decided to purchase its own Rangevision PRO.

Are you interested in finding out if a 3D scanner is suitable for your tasks? Please contact our experts for advice!