World's First 3D Scanner On Sale For $17,000
Looking for a machine that makes interactive images of real objects? Meet the Photosimile 5000.
Last week we reported on a printer that creates physical objects based on virtual objects. Today Ortery is claiming that its new $17,000 Photosimile 5000 3D photocopier is a world's first, providing end-users the means to scan physical objects and transform them into 3D virtual objects. One simply places an object inside the "photocopier" and the machine pipes the scan into the connected PC.
The drawback is that the end-result isn't exactly usable in a Maya or 3DS Max virtual modeling sense--the object is merely a Flash or GIF animation comprised of 72 images. The photocopier itself is nothing more than a miniature photography studio, providing an embedded light box (four daylight bulbs spouting 6500K of illumination), a DSLR camera, an automated camera positioning device, and the specialized workflow software.
Connected via USB, the Photosimile software controls every aspect of the scanner, including the camera's location, turntable movement, camera settings, the actual image capturing, and the post processing. The camera itself can rotate 360-degrees around the object, and move from zero to 90 degrees vertically to capture the object from above.
Still, while end-users can't make virtual objects with this system using vectors and textures, online retailers and manufacturers will benefit from the professional lighting and the reduction in steps to create more realistic animation of products. The Photosimile 5000 is shipping now, and can be purchased from an Ortery reseller. The device come with free technical support, free software upgrades and a one-year warranty.
In all honesty though, there are far, far, cheaper ways to do what the Photosimile does.
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NOT the first. They've been on the market for years or you could just build one for little more than the cost of a camera.
That thing looks bigger than my computer desk and cost more than my car..
useless.....
I'm sorry, but for $17,000, and you can't have it be imported to Maya or a CAD project, this almost seems pointless.
I mean, there must be a market for devices like this, but can't see it being a huge market.
Now, we move to the NextEngine 3D scanner, it costs only $3000, and is able to scan object that are 6+ feet tall. (from the intro video on the site)
https://www.nextengine.com/indexSecure.htm
After seeing the NextEngine, it makes this piece of hardware look completely rediculous.
Couple this with the "new" 3D printer and you can make real duplicates like you read in books, etc.
3D FAIL
This seems like nothing more than an overpriced "propriatary" device that does in one process what anyone could do in stages with a camera, a laptop, and digital imaging software. That's not worth seventeen grand.
If you can't import these objects into CAD, there goes the majority of your market.
Couple this with the "new" 3D printer and you can make real duplicates like you read in books, etc.
Except all this thing does is spin a camera in a circle while it takes photos...
Not a first nor even particularly noteworthy. We've got a 3d scanner in one of our labs at work (ATOS)... it can export geometry directly to Solidworks or Rapidform and costs a LOT more than 17k. http://www.capture3d.com/products-ATOS.html
Resolution is respectable given the tech (20-40 microns with care in scanning), which seems pretty bad to me (I build sub micron to single digit micron level measurement systems) but in reality is pretty good for many applications.
NextEngine 3D scanner is the PC.
Photosimile 5000 is ANY Apple computer.
PC does is better and at half the price just like the NextEngine.
One of the best articles I've ever read:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/01/25 [...] l?hpt=Sbin
NextEngine 3D scanner is the PC.Photosimile 5000 is ANY Apple computer. PC does is better and at half the price just like the NextEngine. One of the best articles I've ever read:http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/01/25 [...] l?hpt=Sbin
That's pretty much the best article ever.
so this thing is basically a waste of money
"four daylight bulbs spouting 6500K of illumination"
Just a side note, 6500 Kelvin is the temperature (color) of the light, not the amount of light. 6500 is about natural sunlight. The higher the number the more blue it is, the lower, the more red.
NOT The first, My friend did it as a senior project - Computer Engineering !
very expensive.
Photosimile 5000? Its the first? What about the 1000? 2000? 3000?
WTF? Its not 3D is its not vector /textures... now THAT would be quite handy.
Its easy to kinda understand how this is handy... but its a huge profit margin over a kit package... really? $500 DLSE, $500 light kit, $100 software?
Anyone can build their own.
1 - a digital camera =$100~500
2 - tri-pods (tiny and large) = $40
3 - A light kit (optional) $100~300
4 - Turn-table, you can get this in a garden shop. It allows people to put potted plants on them and rotate. Paint it white ($5)
5 - measure out 60~100 dots evenly on outter edge of turn table. (or if you're good, create software to read the dots and control the camera)
Place object on table, snap a picture at every dot-point. Upload photos to PC, load up a GIF or FLASH creator and you're done.
lol what a waste. What's the point if you can't use the item you scanned in a modeling program?
Wow... Jay Leno is selling the nextEngine... ugh.
But THAT is a real 3D Scanner, a good deal for $3000.
The apple vs PC doesn't apply as the PhotoCrap5000 is... well, junk and the NextEngine is a real scanner.
Interestingly, it is Apple (see previous postings) who have been providing the ability to do Object VR, or 2.5D (which is what this is - NOT 3D scanning)for many years within Quicktime. http://www.apple.com/quicktime/res [...] /qtvr.html
But that in itself has the inherent Apple issue of being proprietary and it is only with the advent of Flash and other more 'open' technologies that this type of image is becoming more accepted/relevant. Great for browsing to get an initial impression of a product or object, no good if you want to reproduce it or study dimensional detail.
???
This is a "360 degree view image creator" is more like it.
Why do people even bother making that type of "been there done that" machines? I mean, i'm not impressed by big marketing farts anymore, and products like that just don't cut it in my book.
This scanner reminds me of one of the best products out there, the dvd re-winder, http://www.dvdrewinder.com/
Mix this w\ xray technology and build a worth-while airport security scanner.
overpriced POS
Rofl yea 17k for that you can build your own 3d laser scanner for a whole lot less.
http://www.david-laserscanner.com/
you can buy a laser scanner already assembled for 5k with software.
except it doesn't "scan" (photograph) the bottom of the object. LAME!
LOL! What garbage! $17,000 for something that makes nothing more than a 3D flash animation. What crap.
This is a worthless tech. It's not 3d at all. You can't use the object, heck it's not even an object but a flash animation.
$17,000?! Pass.
This scanner reminds me of one of the best products out there, the dvd re-winder, http://www.dvdrewinder.com/
Sorry for double post - but was this for real? I mean was it really for sale and people actually bought it? HAHAHAHA!