As he worked, the changes to his precise three-dimensional models were reflected instantly in the engineering and two-dimensional CAD files, the working drawings for the motorcycle's assembly.
"We had up to a thousand floor plans supposed to be delivered every day, " says Mr. Bergman, whose firm, Diakrit, produces virtual tours and three-dimensional models for housing developments.
When they performed 30 mock deliveries, using three-dimensional models of the mother's pelvis and a baby, the team found turning the baby so its spine faces the mother's belly was the safest way to proceed if the baby's shoulders were stuck in the birth canal.
The company's biggest worry is that someone will come up with a scanning technique that makes it possible to generate three-dimensional images without building models.