About This Series: AI Agents in Industrial Applications
This is the latest post in our series exploring how AI agents can bring real value to complex industries such as manufacturing, logistics, and field service, as observed by Miles Sims, AVP Manufacturing & Energy – Industrial AI & Data, LevelShift.
What does the Reverse Engineer Agent Do?
The Reverse Engineer Agent is an AI-powered system that converts real-world parts often legacy or undocumented into digital formats ready for CAD tools. Using photographs, scans, or old documentation, it extracts geometry, structure, and part relationships to build 3D assemblies.
It creates a direct path from physical components to digital models, streamlining re-creation, analysis, and integration with enterprise systems.
Where is the Reverse Engineer Agent Used in Manufacturing?
This agent supports several real-world applications:
∙ Legacy part replication: Restore older components without design files.
∙ 2D-to-3D conversion: Build CAD models from multiple photos.
∙ Assembly mapping: Identify how parts fit and work together.
∙ Aftermarket manufacturing: Reproduce discontinued parts on demand.
∙ Product analysis: Benchmark competitor parts without internal access.
How Does It Work?
The agent uses a multi-module architecture designed to analyze visual inputs, infer structure, and generate usable outputs. Each module handles a specific task, working together to deliver a comprehensive digital reconstruction.
Key components include:
∙ Vision Agent: Detects and segments parts from photos or scans.
∙ View Selector: Chooses the most useful visual angles.
∙ Relational Reasoning Module: Infers physical connections and constraints.
∙ CAD Integration Agent: Converts analysis into files for SolidWorks, NX, or Fusion 360.
∙ Metadata Generator: Identifies materials, fasteners, finishes, and creates a bill of materials (BOM).
∙ System Connector: Sends outputs to PLM, MES, or ERP platforms.
What Research Backs This Up?
The technology is grounded in findings from a CVPR 2023 paper titled “Multi-Agent Visual Grounding for Reverse Engineering of Mechanical Assemblies from Multi-View Images” by Yuan Liu, Haiyang Xu, Yixuan Chen, and Kai Xu.
Key innovations include:
∙ Collaborative agents: Separate agents specialize in tasks like selecting views, detecting parts, or understanding mechanical relationships.
∙ Graph-guided reasoning: Information flows through a graph-based system to interpret not just shape, but function.
∙ Proven accuracy: On the PartNet-Mobility dataset, their MAgNet model outperformed single-agent models on part recognition, pose estimation, and relational accuracy.
Real-world Example
A workshop needed to document and reproduce an old CNC chuck assembly with no original design files.
What the process looked like:
∙ A technician captured 8 images from different angles.
∙ The agent identified individual parts like the jaws, carriage, and bolts.
∙ The system inferred how the parts fit and moved together.
∙ It created a parametric CAD model and exploded view.
∙ The results were uploaded into the PLM system for future use.
Final result: A ready-to-use 3D assembly, complete BOM, and reassembly guide, delivered in just six hours.
Why Does It Matter?
∙ Faster turnaround: Speeds up part modeling from weeks to hours
∙ Improved accuracy: Matches original dimensions and functionality
∙ Knowledge capture: Digitizes tribal knowledge for reuse
∙ System integration: Connects with your existing digital workflows
FAQs
1. Can I recreate a part if I only have photos or a sample?
Yes. The Reverse Engineer Agent can use photos or scans of a physical part to create a 3D model, even if original design files are missing.
2. What kind of files does the agent give me?
It provides CAD files like STEP or IGES, along with a bill of materials (BOM) and part details you can use in design or production systems.
3. Will it work with the software I already use?
Most likely. The agent is built to work with popular tools like SolidWorks, NX, Fusion 360, and can connect to PLM or ERP systems as well.
