3D Scanners?

[biggsgolf]

Anybody use a 3D Scanner?

[Subculture]

They’re still an expensive tool with limited utility for many modellers. They’re going to get a lot cheaper in the near future, as the market expands in the AR/VR sector, and cheaper enhanced time of flight sensors come on to the market. Cruder versions have been built in to phones and tablets for some time now, Apple Vision Pro is out in a month or two, and that will have some pretty novel sensors in.

[CC Clarke]

I've used high-end laser scanners (capable of generating a detailed room interior down to small parts. The low-end machines that produce quality OBJ/STL files are still outrageoulsy expensive. The Staples "Easy Button" for generating 3D models cheaply is still a ways off.

Unless you have deep pockets, there's no substitute for modeling ability to support this type of hobby. Yet.

[RCSubGuy]

I have a REVO and it's useless. Not useful for small, detailed parts. Maybe with large things like faces or car bodies, you'd be okay, but we have different needs. If anyone wants one to try, I'll cut you a tremendous deal!

[Subculture]

That’s disappointing to hear, which model do you have a Pop 2?

[RCSubGuy]

Yes, I have a POP2. If anyone wants to take a stab at scanning, I paid $700 for it. I'd sell it for $300.

[tifosi12]

I bought several laser scanners some years ago thinking I could scan in a model in a particular scale, then rescale it on the computer. Not gonna work. The scanners did a poor job. Not so much the scanners, but the software was lousy: You could see the scan looked reasonably well before saving, then the software tried to "close the holes" and "poured concrete" all over the model to the point that it was useless. I even tried communicating with some software manufacturers but they couldn't care less.

I tried stationary 3D scanners as well as hand held (e.g. for room scanning). I used a tablet based version on some Roman ruins in Europe as well as in some Neolithic caves. They worked to a degree, but trying then to use that cloud/mesh to build a model is still a stretch.

Luckily by now the secondary 3D model market has evolved so dramatically that you can find a lot of the models right there, thus eliminating the need to scan something that already exists. Add to that some talented people I hire occasionally to recreate a part I'm missing.

[Subculture]

Anyone had a crack with the photogrammetry software on a smartphone?

[Marylandradiosailor]

Subculture ... I have spent a couple of weeks last year trying Meshroom with less than great results although the technology is kinda cool .. the pictures on the net look like your photo above, take your cell camera and wammo a great 3D model, my experience is not so perfect. My application at the time was trying to get 3D models of RC sailing boat hulls in fusion 360. Maybe I was doing something wrong but don't think so ?

You need a camera with "raw" image output so you don't get compression artifacts, I tried several cameras and my Samsung cell phone in pro photo with raw output mode seems to work the best. I build a special stand (see first photo below) to hold the hulls and a rotating camera holder so I could take images every 15 deg around half of the hull (assuming hull is mirrored) at several selected heights, I normally took 100-150 pictures for each hull. I placed reference marks on the hull and had a geometric reference below the hull for the software to key off of.

The first picture below shows the setup and the camera picture locations.

After getting the mesh from Meshroom and spending CONSIDERABLE time cleaning up the mesh output with other tools like Meshmixer and Meshlab (fortunately all of these tools are free) I could import the mesh into fusion 360 as per the second picture below.

Then I could create the hull contour sketches as shown in the third picture and generate a 3D model for general use, 3D printing or design refinement.

For my application, I would have saved time if would have skipped the Meshroom, used a contour gage on the hulls at specific stations, tooks a picture of the contour gage and imported into fusion 360.... so your mileage may vary !

Khim

(sorry not sure why the pics are fuzzy, I uploaded them full size?)