Aside from their ability to capture complex geometry without any targets, one of the greatest features of handheld Artec 3D scanners is their ability to simultaneously capture color.
Sometimes refered to as texture, color is incredibly important to create lifelike renders and identify key locations on parts. Normally, texture has to be captured seperately and then projected onto a mesh – a time-consuming process and impossible if any part of the object moves between the two different captures. Since the handheld scanners capture both geometry and texture at the same time, there isn’t any issue matching the color to the exact position it should be.
Certain objects that you scan may have issues being scanned, including clear and shiny objects, or certain black colors such as carbon fiber. This is due to the capture camera failing to identify faces (in the case of clear objects) or reflects; making the scan noisy for shiny or black objects.
To correct this common 3D scanner issue, the object needs a coating to add opaqueness to cover the difficult areas to scan. Tape can be used in a pinch, but you may compromise the geometry of the object.
Handheld scanners convert millions of points of data to millions of polygons – taking up computer resources and disk space. If you work with 3D scanners, you already know that file size and processing data are the biggest limits of the technology.
By understanding how different scanners capture and process data, we can find ways to work around these limitations and optimize our scanning and processing times. This can be done in the raw data or final mesh depending on the end-goal of the project. Some software for example will let you combine different mesh and point cloud data together to increase accuracy and resolution. Others you can edit the mesh itself to show two different resolutions, increasing the polygon count in areas of interested while decreasing on simpler surfaces.
Sometimes there is no way to fully scan a part that has features hidden from sight. Since optical scanners are analogous to spray-painting with light, you must have line of sight on any feature that you want to “paint.” In many of these cases, the only viable option will be to use an industrial CT scanner. The cost and facilities requirements of CT scanners can be prohibitive for most companies, however, and outsourcing to a CT service provider might delay a project or pose IP issues that take time to resolve.
Hole-filling has always been present in Artec Studio, but new in Studio 14 is the Bridge option within the Fix Holes menu. This tool allows Artec 3D scanner users to constrain how holes are filled for more controlled results.
