THE LABORATORY

1. CNC MATERIAL MACHINING

1.1 The advent of robots in sculpture

1.2 The artistic project process

1.3 Studio Stagetti between tradition and
innovation

2. 3D PRINTING AND PROTOTYPING

2.1 3D Printing

2.2 Virtual Modeling and Traditional Modeling

2.3 Scale Project Simulations

3. 3D SCANNER AND PHOTOGRAMMETRY

3.1 Structured Light 3D Scanner

3.2 Material Selection and Photoinsertion




The company's production philosophy has remained unchanged over the years: traditional principles and methods are rigorously respected, while integrating cutting-edge technologies where truly useful. The result is a quality of work that remains unchanged over time, accompanied by greater production efficiency, capable of successfully meeting the demands of a global market.The company's production philosophy has remained unchanged over the years: traditional principles and methods are rigorously respected, while integrating cutting-edge technologies where truly useful. The result is a quality of work that remains unchanged over time, accompanied by greater production efficiency, capable of successfully meeting the demands of a global market.



CNC MATERIAL PROCESSING


The advent of robots in sculpture


Until the 1980s, CNC (Computerized Numerical Control) machines were used exclusively for high-precision work. They represented the evolution of NC machines, because they allowed direct numerical control from an external computer (CNC).

Later, given their extreme versatility and precision, these CNC machines were also adopted in other sectors, such as
the stone industry, and more generally in the entire artisanal and artistic sector, for example, in the creation of wood sculptures (wood carving) and polystyrene (milling).

The advantages of these CNC machines are:

–       Very short work times

–       Precise repeatability of the work. In fact, if properly installed and equipped, CNC machines can produce parts identical to the original.

These improvements have allowed the rise of these machines in every work environment today.


The artistic project process


Following the advent of robotics, it has become necessary to provide digital 3D models (meshes, NURBS) to calculate the machine path. This has also led to the development of data acquisition through the use of 3D scanners or other techniques such as photogrammetry. These techniques allow us to "capture" shapes from real objects.

From this acquisition phase, which also allows us to scan clay and plaster sketches, we move on to cleaning the meshes, sizing the model to an appropriate scale, and finally, to programming the file.

The advantage of CNC milling over traditional techniques is also evident in the simplification of model scaling. Once the model is considered finished, we move on to programming, where the CNC operator selects the appropriate parameters for
executing the hollowing and finishing operations on the block of raw material.

Following CNC programming, the advantages are most noticeable for parts with large, curved and complex surfaces, such as sculptures in marble, wood, and plastic. Furthermore, with the most recent numerical controls, advanced surface processing functions are beginning to be implemented, allowing the machining of NURBS 3D surfaces natively, without the need for intermediate CAM programs. It is possible to bring the surface definition to the point of smoothing or polishing, without the use of a stonemason. We tend to avoid this option because, in addition to the resulting higher cost, it is preferable to leave a tangible imprint of manual labor—that is, the touch of the craftsman, which we believe is an added value.


Studio Stagetti: Between Tradition and Innovation


Since 2008, Studio Stagetti has been equipped with a 7-axis robotic arm, becoming one of the first sculpture workshops in Tuscany to use it for sculpture modeling. The robotic arm is used to rough-hew the block to a remarkable level of finish; the finishing process is then carried out by hand, carried out by our skilled stonemasons.

The advent of robots and digital technology has allowed some traditional techniques to be superseded, such as the compass enlargement system, necessary to scale models onto the marble block. Now, the model comes out of the machine with a level of finish very close to the final level. The subsequent phase, performed in our workshop, unlike other companies, involves that the sculptures are always finished by hand. This requires the stonemason to have greater control over the details and a craftsmanship that is directly visible on the sculptures, a human touch that the robot obviously cannot reproduce.

With this technique we can create:

– Marble statues

– Busts

– Sculpture bases

Our sculpture workshop combines the best traditional sculptors with cutting-edge digital techniques.









3D PRINTING and PROTOTYPING


3D Printing


3D printing allows the creation of three-dimensional objects through additive manufacturing, starting from a digital model. This is processed in software that allows the selection of various parameters. Its production can be performed using various technologies, including one that builds prototypes layer by layer, through a layer-by-layer three-dimensional printing process. The great advantage of this technology is that it has allowed the reduction of prototyping costs. Today, in fact, it is possible to obtain a prototype at a price very close to that of the final product.

3D printing was born in 1986 with the invention of stereolithography, which uses photosensitive resins solidified by a UV light source. Subsequently, new printing techniques and countless materials have been developed, including polymers, metals, and clay.

In the artistic context, it is mainly used to create 3D models of sculptures, but also directly to print the final product following the advent of increasingly larger printers. Currently, the real limitation of printing is the cost of the final product, which still does not allow its large-scale use, as is the case, for example, with subtractive production techniques.


Virtual modeling and traditional modeling


Starting from a sketch or draft, our laboratory can create a model in clay or digitally.

Digital models can be created either by digital sculpting or by scanning real models with a 3D scanner or photogrammetry.

Each technique has its advantages and disadvantages, and it is not always preferable to use technology. It is always important to first consider strategies that allow the development of projects with control and safety, and that also provide an economic advantage over other equally satisfactory options.

Scale simulations of the project


To better control our projects, our technical studio is able to simulate their development from the initial phase to the final testing. The goal is to ensure the feasibility of the idea by meticulously planning each phase:

We are structured to provide the artist with the necessary support right from the design phase.

To this end, we have realized the importance of being able to create projects at an appropriate scale right from the early stages of study;

These simulations are necessary for:

– Controlling the proportions of the models in relation to themselves

– Controlling the sculptures in relation to the space and the users of the work

– Promoting the project to potential collectors or institutions

With this aim, we approached 3D printing to create scale models, which will also be useful later for the stonemason to double-check the shapes and surfaces of the sculptures. We can therefore present a project in the best possible way to study its strengths and weaknesses.










3D SCANNER and PHOTOGRAMMETRY


Structured light 3D scanner


Structured-light 3D scanning uses the projection of a light grid onto the surface of the object. The deformation of the pattern induced by the object's surface is then captured by a remote camera and used to calculate the three-dimensional coordinates. The triangulation of the "illuminated" points produces a point cloud, which is transformed into a mesh (digital surface). In the field of sculpture, it is used to extract a digital model from a sketch.

Today, thanks to 3D scanning, we are able to create extremely accurate Documentation and Digital Content of mechanical
components, molds, or assemblies of any shape, material, and reflectivity. Using these sophisticated, non-contact three-dimensional survey technologies, a physical object is digitized (3D scanning), obtaining a cloud of points in space (dense point cloud) representative of the object itself, with a precision of plus or minus 25 microns. The data thus obtained is then processed with filtering, alignment, and polygonization operations to obtain a mesh (typically in .stl, .obj format) that can be considered a true
"Digital Twin" of the original object and can be used in various fields and applications:

- Rapid Prototyping – 3D Printing, CNC Milling – to create accurate duplicates of the object, or derivative versions, in various materials, sizes, and surface finishes

- 3D Digital Archives, e.g., Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software, FEM analysis

- 3D Digital Archives of components/molds for which CAD data is not available

- Augmented Reality (AR/VR) for the creation of digital content, also accessible online

- Reverse Engineering for the generation of CAD data from scan data


Choice of materials and photo insertion


Thanks to 3D models, it is also possible to simulate photorealistic scenes, allowing us to choose the best aesthetic solutions. Today, the high quality of rendered images allows us to choose materials and finishes that allow the end customer to understand the best choices not only in terms of volumes but also in terms of colors and finishes, depending on the light and the surrounding environment.




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