With a modelling clay version of the controller ready, it is photographed from as many angles as possible before these photos are processed by the open source Meshroom tool into a 3D model.

While car design relies on digital imaging, virtual reality and 3D modeling, most designers and decision-makers want physical models, meaning handcrafted clay cars will not disappear anytime soon.

Car manufacturers have been using small scale and full-scale clay models since the 1930s and it won't change any time soon. Here's the reason.

However, as explained by clay modeling master Kazushi Eto, the physical model is crucial for the evaluation of a design since everything looks and feels different in the real world. His role is to ...

Lastly, and likely most importantly, having a physical version of the design is important to see what it looks like under natural light. After all, the vehicle will spend most, if not all, of its ...

Modeling the GV80’s complex grille from scratch would take forever, Farnham says, scraping a few remaining cusps from one crosshatched opening. 3D printers spit out steering wheels, shifters ...

Harley Earl, head of GM's styling studio, was the first to turn sketches into full-scale models using malleable clay. It changed the industry by how much it simplified and sped up the design process.

Ford: A full-size model built to design the new Raptor was composed of 1,935 pounds of clay – and designers spent 20,000 hours modeling it over four years.