A Low-Cost Medium-Range 3D Scanner

3D scanning is a fast way to measure and digitise physical objects with many benefits
including process cost reduction (virtual prototyping, quality control, digital transmission)
and the creation of high-value personalised services. Scanners that can capture larger
structures, such as people, vehicles and buildings, operate over a range of 1-5 metres and are
known as mid-range 3D scanners. These are used in fields such as medicine, construction, real
estate, forensics, insurance, design, architecture, entertainment, cultural preservation and
gaming to measure, digitise and create 3D surveys and assets. However, most applications
need high accuracy (50-100 microns) which is expensive, ranging from £15,000 for static
tripod mounted and handheld systems (Geomagic Capture) to over £100,000 for automatic
systems mounted on robotic arms (Faro). This makes them prohibitively expensive for smaller
organisations who otherwise benefit greatly.
The barrier to low-cost scanning is the technology involved. High resolution mid-range
scanners typically use structured-light and triangulation, which requires expensive digital
projectors cameras. Lower cost systems are available from but are based on laser triangulation
technology designed for computer games rather than 3D scanning. Their low accuracy is
insufficient for medical, design and engineering applications.
We will develop a low-cost mid-range scanner that is suitable for these applications. Our
novel technique is fast and accurate, giving depth measurements for every pixel on the camera
and can be configured for high resolution imaging despite using very low-cost components.