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Engadget wrote:Never mind that silly name: ProFORMA (which stands for 'Probabilistic Feature-based On-line Rapid Model Acquisition', if you must know) is some cool system that turns any ordinary webcam into a powerful 3D scanning tool. In fact, a camera is pretty much all you need for some "on-line" modeling action -- no laser or green screen necessary -- meaning the 3D models are constructed on the spot while you slowly rotate the objects, although ProFORMA can also track fast moving objects as shown in the demo video after the break.

complacent wrote:i love seeing macgyver'd tech like this.

take something old and staid and make it awesome and useful again. very cool.

Mr Kleen wrote:I think this dovetails nicely with 3D printers getting more and more accessible.

Use a free download to turn a laser level and a netcam into a highly accurate 3D scanner... all you need is a corner and a printer to make it all work!

Building a 3D Scanner from a netcam and a line level laser sounds like a nice hack... but it's actually a highly functional and precise tool for bringing the real world into your favorite modeling tools. (We're talking 5 thousandths of an inch accuracy is possible if you spend a bit more on your netcam and laser!)

Ben Eadie has helped design, build and film three world record holding Human Powered Vehicles. He lives in 3D mechanical CAD programs, and one of his favorite tools for getting objects into his fave modeling tool, SolidWorks, is his home built laser scanner.

He shows us how to build one on this episode of Systm.

The key? A nifty chunk of software called DAVID Laserscanner, the basic version is free, a few minutes with printer, and a corner that has a 90° angle.

Nothing is cooler than taking stuff you already have and cobbling into a very functional tool.