User manual

34
What Happens During a Scan
The scanner uses two lasers to scan small to medium sized objects placed on
its rotating bed. One rotation provides 360° coverage of an object. For some
small objects, one full rotation (or pass) is enough to scan the whole thing. In
order to capture larger objects, the scanner’s head rises and automatically
detects whether there is more of the object to scan. Like building a virtual layer
cake, the scanner continues additional passes until the full height of the object is
captured.
During the scan, the bed will rotate forward, but will also sometimes rotate back.
This is by design and is called Adaptive Scanning. Its purpose is to capture as
much of the object as is physically possible. As new sets of points are captured,
the distance between them and the previously-captured set of points is
calculated. If too much distance has been detected between the last recorded
point, the scanner “backs-up” and re-scans the areas between the two sets of
points in an attempt to fill in that distance with additional data.
Problem Materials and Surfaces
There are some materials that laser scanners have trouble scanning. Because
the scanner works by capturing the data that is made by the laser hitting the
surface of the object, any material that makes it difficult for the camera to record
where the laser is hitting it will not scan well.
 Objects with surfaces that are too shiny (i.e. shiny metal, jewels, mirrors,
patent leather etc.) - will reflect or bounce the laser away from the object.
If your scan looks like it has a halo of cotton candy spinning around it,
that’s a sign that the object is too shiny.
 Objects that are clear or translucent (i.e. glass, Lucite, clear plastic,
flower petals, etc.) - will let the laser light pass right through the surface of
the object instead of being stopped by the surface. Your scan will look
like there’s nothing solid where the laser light passes through.
 Objects that are too dark and absorb too much light (i.e. black velvet, fur)
- will also absorb the laser light causing an inaccurate scan. The software
won’t be able to determine where the surface of the object is.
So how do you scan objects with the above features? Pre-treat them with matte
paint, anti-reflection sprays or powder (i.e. baby or talcum powder). Users have
also had luck with water soluble colored hairspray which is safe for most non-
porous material and can be washed away with water. This may not be
appropriate for all objects, however. Also, if you want to capture color data, be
aware that the treatment may alter the color as it appears in the final scan.