Reverse engineering your product or machine without drawings
If you have a machine, product or piece of equipment that no longer has its original CAD drawings, support from the original electronics company, or needs improvements and updating, you are not alone. This is why reverse engineering has become so vital, allowing you to recreate a product with no CAD.
Businesses that rely on equipment and machinery will reach the point where it stops working… and no one knows how it was built.
There are many reasons this may happen:
- The original supplier is gone
- The equipment documentation has been lost
- The design is outdated and needs modernisation
What is reverse engineering?
Reverse engineering can be a new term when you aren’t based in the electronics sector. In simpler terms, it means taking an existing product and taking it it apart to understand how it works, so it can be recreated, repaired or improved from scratch.
At Winter and Smith, we do this every day. Whether it’s replicating a product exactly as it was, or making it new and improved, we always start from the same point and work backwards. It begins with learning about what your machine does.
Is reverse engineering the only name for it?
Whilst reverse engineering is the most common name for this process, we’ve had clients refer to it as “Product Cloning”, “Product redesigning”, “obsolescence managing”, “designing out obsolescence” and in one instance the phrase “help I can no longer buy the parts to build my product, what can I do?” was typed into the search engine.
How to recreate a product if have no drawings or CAD?
This is the most common situation that we encounter at Winter and Smith. A machine or piece of equipment is still being used, but the drawings have been lost or were never provided in the first place.
This can big a big problem if your machine goes wrong, but not if we reverse engineer it. We work initially with the product istelf and analyse/scan every single component it’s made up of. From every connection and function on the PCB, we analyse and document it all so we can build a clear picture of exactly how your machine works, and how we can recreate it.
We only need the product to work with it. In some cases, we have worked with just photos and information. If parts are lost or damaged, we can still piece together the information required.
Messy and broken custom controller board with no CAD drawings or schematics. This PCB was used for a thermoforming machine at a mouth guard company.
Replaced expensive, outdated components (e.g., a £60 part swapped for a £1.50 equivalent) while improving the overall reliability of the design.
What if the company that built my equipment no longer exists?
This happens more often than you’d expect. Businesses are constantly closing, merging or moving on, leaving your equipment and machinery with no support or drawings.
When you are left with a system that can’t be maintained or easily replaced, reverse engineering can remove that anxiety and dependancy. Reverse engineering involves understanding the design of your products, so that you can regain control again.
In many cases our reverse engineering services have improved reliability and made future maintenance much simpler.
How to replicate a machine exactly as it is
Sometimes you just need the exact same machine, replicated. Your business might rely on this machine as a part of a larger system or process that can not be changed easily. In this case we can recreate the machine design as closely as possible so it behaves in exactly the same way with the same functions.
If a component is no longer available, we can easily source the modern equivalent to perform the same function. If it’s hard to find, we will find it.
Sometimes exact replication isn’t necessary, so we can improve the design and efficiency whilst keeping the same output. It’s entirely up to you.
What if I want to redesign or improve my product?
Many people want to “reimagine” their old machinery, and reverse engineering is the first step. By understanding what your machine does and how it functions, we can easily improve it with a redesign.
The advantages of redesigning your products are:
- Making your product more reliable
- Reducing the cost of your product
- Improving your product’s performance and efficiency
- Updating outdated electronics
- Making it simpler to manufacture, for future use
If a total redesign is a simpler route, we can build your machine from scratch. We just need to know exactly what it needs to do.
How do you reverse engineer a product or machine?
We begin the process by examining your product in detail. Using scanning software, we can digitally scan each layer and function.
We then document every function, every connection, layout and mechanical relationships.
Once we have full understanding, we either recreate it, repair it, improve ir or redesign it entirely. It depends on what your goal is.
I can no longer buy the parts to build my product, can I still recreate it?
Companies with much older systems tend to come across this problem. Older machinery may still be using components that are no longer made, making maintenance and repairs much more complicated and expensive.
Thankfully there is always a modern alternative to every old component, that will either match or improve its performance. It is usually the case that the technology has improved over time, and can ensure your new machine needs less maintenance.
I only know what the machine does, how can I reverse engineer it?
This information is usually all you need!
Technical drawings and schematics are not needed if you can explain exactly what the machine needs to achieve. A new product can be designed from scratch to achieve the same outcome.
My design has a microprocessor on it, can that be reverse engineered?
If you have the original programming files, or source code for the processor, the circuit board can potentially be reverse engineered. If the processor is obsolete or you do not have the code, then one option is to reverse engineer the circuit board and then fit a different processor to the board.
The key thing here is the ability to explain exactly what the unit does, and how it goes about it.
My machine no longer works due to outside circumstances, what do I do?
Sometimes a client finds themselves in the situation where a product no longer works due to circumstances beyond their control. Some examples of this are timing products that received their signal from the Rugby MSF radio transmitter (that has ceased broadcasting), or products that used 2G/GSM mobile phone signals (which are being switched off). In these instances, sometimes the product can be re-designed to use modern alternatives instead.
The key thing here is the ability to explain exactly what the unit does, and how it goes about it.
What are the advantages of reverse engineering?
- Reverse engineering gives companies control over their own products and a full understanding of the equipment.
- Companies are less dependant on a single supplier, giving them piece of mind when things go ary.
- Innovation and adaptations become easier when the existing design is better understood.
- Business usually end up with a better and cheaper product than they started with.
Original board for the Greek railway.
Neater and more reliable re-imagined board, installed in Greece!
More FAQs:
What if my product can't be replicated?
In rare cases, direct recreation is not possible. But a good electronics company won’t stop there.
Designing a new solution that performs the same function would be the best route forward, improving efficiency and reliability. Your outcome is still the same – a working machine that does exactly what you need it to do – and the support and schematics alongside it.
What if my product contains more than just electronics?
If your product also consists of mechanical elements, PC software, enclosures and other items not necessarily electronic in nature – we work with a number of different design partners, who can all contribute to the overall design.
Is reverse engineering always the solution?
No – in some instances it is more efficient to look at what a product does and design a new alternative from the start. We will always examine a product to ascertain this, during the design process.
What is the hardest product we have been asked to reverse engineer?
It’s not always the most complicated designs that are the hardest, we were given a one off “lash up” design made on Veroboard in the 1990’s – that had been running in a factory for 20 years. The factory produced lubricant and greases, and the board was given to us under a thick coating of grease and dust – where it was impossible to identify what it was, or even what colour the wires were on it! We had to carefully scrub off the grease, and then ultrasonically clean the entire unit – before it was in a state where we could work out what it did. We designed a simple alternative, which is still working five years later – but is now covered in a thick coating of grease and dust!
Why speak to Winter and Smith Electronics?
If you are looking for ways to recreate, redesign or replicate a product, reverse engineering is exactly what you need.
Talk to us at Winter and Smith today for a chat; we will look at what you have, discuss what you need and give you advice on the best solution. Whether it’s recreating an already existing machine or building something better, we will find you a solution.
