3D Scanner??

[rsegrest]

In advance of getting a Makerbot Replicator we purchased the Makerbot 3-d scanner. I can only speak to what we have experimented with and tried:

1. The scanner has trouble picking up detail on dark objects. We attempted to do a fairly detailed scan of our school mascot and it was mediocre at best even with tweaking and adjusting various tools included in the software.
2. Lighter colored objects work best.
3. Most scans come out a little blobby here and there so they need to be saved in a format that we can alter using other software (Blender, CAD etc.).
4. Smaller objects with little detail work best.
5. You are not going to get an 'exact' replica of your object. Or at least we haven't yet. We have been able to print scanned objects just not to exact detail of original.
6. The more delicate the detail the harder it is for the scanner to pick up.
7. The scanner is finicky about lighting. It is highly recommended that you avoid placing it directly under a light source (contrary to what I thought).
8. To get full scans you have to do a 'multi-scan' meaning you run the first scan, adjust the position of the item, and then re-run the scan process (flip to its side to get a top and bottom image) .
9. It does not scan hollow objects very well.
10. The lasers can be difficult to accurately align.

I realize this seems like a long list of 'don't buy a 3-D scanner' (or at least the one we have). On the other-hand we have had some successful scans that did not need to be altered. Much of this may be trial and error on our part (there is not a lot of documentation and as far as the retail market they still aren't 'mainstream' yet). We have enjoyed toying with it and seeing what it can and cannot do.

I agree with techhelpbb and Don; don't buy one assuming you are going to get a technically acceptable part for 3-D printing because it isn't going to happen. If you are buying one to get the majority of the work out of the way so that you simply have to do some alterations to a part to get it technically acceptable for your usage then by all means snag one. Otherwise I might wait a couple of years for improved designs/functionality and spend that money somewhere else to better help your team.

Hope this helps