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5. The Technology

The Technology

3D Imaging and Scans

The technology consists of a laser camera and a motion control system for moving the camera. Scanned data are recorded and processed on a standard personal computer. The data are transformed through the use of specialized software into high-quality, three-dimensional images.

How It Works

The laser scanning mechanism characterizes each point on the scanned object according to its position and colour. The surface is scanned with three different laser wavelengths (red, green and blue) in one focused beam. Each object is scanned several times. The scans are melded together by a trained technician using a specialized software programme.

Position

The position of each point is recorded in three-dimensional space on x, y, and z axes. The x coordinate is calculated from an accurate measurement of the position of the scanning mirror in the camera. The y coordinate is calculated from an accurate measurement of the camera's motion system. The z, or range coordinate, is calculated through laser triangulation within the camera.

Colour

The colour information at each point is simultaneously gathered. The surface-colour is derived by measuring the intensity of any light that is reflected. Because these measurements are unaffected by ambient light, the accuracy of the surface-colour is assured.

Each point on the object is, therefore, described by six numerical values: positional values for x, y and z, and surface-colour values for red, green and blue.

3D Computer Animation and Multimedia

3D Scan to Animation

3D scans can be used to make animations. The point-cloud scan is converted into a polymesh (triangulated) model using surfacing software.

The polymesh model is then brought into a state-of-the-art 3D computer graphics and animation software. This will allow us to visualize the model, analyze its surface structure, topology, detail and morphology. We can animate models and other 3D objects to create realistic imagery and movies.

The Animation Method

Models can be manipulated and controlled through the software. Using popular animation techniques such as inverse and forward kinematics, wiring systems, particle simulation and simulation engines, one can create kinematics animations where objects are moving based on a set of parameters. Control is paramount.

Dissemination of 3D Data and Animation

Powerful computers and software allow us to process and create many versions of our 3D data, as well as animations. We can create reduced or simplified versions for the web, Flash, 3D PDFs, Pointstream files and video files. The source files for long-term storage and acquisition can be archived and maintained.