A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of meeting Asfand Khan and Rahul Koduri from Eora3D here in New York. They had flown in to finalize plans to kickstart their new 3D scanner. They showed me a demo and I saw firsthand what a cool tool this could be for 3D designers of all skill levels.
The Eora3D scanner uses your smartphone ( supports iOS and android) to capture high quality 3D scans of objects up to a meter large. By projecting a green laser that moves across the surface of an object, it can detect a high-level of detail, perfect for translating objects into 3D models to be modified and 3D printed.
The initial concept of the scanner came from “working on a Concentrating Solar project where they had to measure the specifications of a parabolic dish that was used for tracking the sun. It turned out that the 3D Scanner that was precise enough to do this cost $20,000 ! Since, they couldn’t afford it they attempted building their own. 7 prototypes and multiple iterations later they created the eora 3D Scanner.”
These prototypes were made possible by printing at Shapeways. Using Strong and Flexible Plastic and our Frosted Ultra Detail, Eora3D honed in on their final product and started producing milled Aluminum bodies in the final version.
The team noted that Eoara3D is “the world’s first high-precision 3D Scanner that is entirely powered by a modern smartphone. Smartphone’s today are becoming ever more powerful, some even matching desktop performance. By leveraging the power of a modern Smartphone, they’ve managed to cut down costs and instead invest in a Green Laser. This is because CMOS sensors in cameras are twice as sensitive to the green spectrum, which means better high-resolution scans in a variety of lighting conditions.”
