LOS ANGELES – Here at Siggraph 2012, a show dedicated to
computer graphics and interactive techniques, 3D3 Solutions released KScan3D, a
software package that supports the Kinect as a 3D scanning device. For $299 (or free 14-day trial), users can
now scan objects and locations with a Kinect and quickly get mesh models or
point clouds, which can be exported in ASCII, OBJ, STL, PLY and 3D3’s
proprietary format.
Nick Koziupa, product manager for KScan3D, said the software
isn’t that much different from the company’s FlexScan3D software, which
supports the company’s HDI 3D scanner. Thomas Tong, president of 3D3 Solutions,
“saw an opportunity for using the Kinect for all kinds of 3D purposes,” Koziupa
said. “It was a pretty logical move to take the four years of technology
development of the FlexScan3D software and create KScan3D. We just stripped out
all the stuff that wasn’t related to the Kinect.” Tack in the PrimeSense
drivers and tinker with the UI, and there you have it.
You can see a demonstration of the product in the following
video:
He said it only took about 12 weeks from concept to the
final product they announced here at Siggraph.
But what can you really get from the Kinect? 3D3 isn’t
trying to fool anyone. Even in its product press release, they say KScan3D will
“provide beginners, students, educators, and hobbyists with a fully featured,
easy to use 3D scanning solution.” This doesn’t equal their other
professional-grade solutions. But neither are the prices equal.
“The resolution of the Kinect,” said Koziupa, “well, it’s
kind of strange to say, but it is what it is. It’s a VGA kind of sensor. It’s
not going to give you amazing data. But it’s going to allow your average user,
your students, to get into this and capture stuff that will be clean enough to
provide you with a model that you can then play with as you need to.”
For those just getting into 3D game design, or 3D animation,
it’s a very accessible way to not have to start from scratch.
Plus, this is laying a path to the future. “We don’t have
any inside information about the Kinect 2 or the XBox 720,” Koziupa said, “but
I saw a screenshot floating around, and we’re obviously pretty excited about
it. If it’s true, it would be a pretty considerable increase in resolution, and
then you can imagine the kind of data you could get out of it. We want to make
sure we’re on top of that when it’s released.”
The KScan3D solution is also incredibly mobile. Koziupa
pointed out that he’s using a MacBook Air, weighing only three pounds, running
Bootcamp, plus a Kinect plugged in via USB. You can basically take that
anywhere. “The fact that it’s so mobile is a pretty big deal,” he said.
Of course, you’re limited by the limits of the Kinect. Its
range is something like 16 inches to 13 feet, but as you get further from the
Kinect device, the resolution begins to drop pretty quickly. “Get up as close
as possible,” Koziupa said. “You can capture a significant amount of data for
sure. And then you can decimate it if you want.” The sample model they have on
their site, captured with KScan3D is part of a data set weighing roughly 80 MB.
The software supports 3D printing of objects, too. If you
scan carefully with the Kinect, there is a hole-filling functionality that will
allow the export of water-tight models appropriate for printing.
Finally, sophisticated users might be interested in the
KScan3D API. “It’s a pretty flexible system,” Koziupa said, “if you just want
to use our engine and wrap your own thing around it.”
“There are some really good products out there,” Koziupa
said by way of summary, “but what we’re trying to bring to the table is four
years of successful product, with an interface – all the way from the
installation of the program, to the UI, to the export – where we’ve really
tried to make it easy to use and comprehensive. And I think we’ve achieved
that.”
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Have conducted several scans now with the raptor, very happy with the end results. It should be noted that further software and or skills are required to do anything further with the scans beyond processing the point cloud. I purchased adobe substance which is able to take the scanned object and fill it in, this is necessary if you wish to make 3d prints from the hollow scanned items. Otherwise very happy with the experience so far, four stars awarded as it is still early days and I have no other scanning experience to compare to. Scanner itself is well made and comes with everything you need to get going albeit a computer to run the software. Looking forward to future projects with this new tool.
I have run through lots of this as a secondary school teacher and found this filament to be smooth and operates well in our new 3D printers. I've had few issues with printing and have been happy with the results. I have lots of other colours in the same batch so have good choices for print jobs.
Portability is a definite plus.
Uses over the last week.
A quick scan and measure to get thread pitch on hydraulic fittings.
A quick scan and trim of hydromotor mesh on different harvesters and overlay within starvision to check that mounting holes were identical.
Measure volumes of plantation tree trunks for historical growth rate measurement.