MakerBot Rolls Out 3D Scanner

 3D Scanning  

3D Printing company Makerbot has released their Digitizer, a 3D scanner that will allow you to scan in real objects and use them for 3D printing or digital modification.  Priced below competitive products, the Digitizer could be a game-changer.

S ince March, the team at MakerBot have been teasing their Digitizer desktop 3D scanner. Now they’re just about ready release it.

Priced at $1,400, you too can scan all the little knick-knacks in your life and turn them into 3D schematics to print or share with others.

To use the Digitizer, you place an object on its central turntable and initiate the device.  The system uses a pair of lasers that will scan the object’s surface geometry and turn that cloud of data points into a 3D model.

MakerBot says the whole process takes about 12 minutes, after which you’re able to recreate the item a 3D printer or modify the data using software such as Pixologic's ZBrush.

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MakerBot is easily one of the best known proponents of the 3D printing movement, and a device like Digitizer may just be what the movement needs to make 3D printing more mainstream.

CEO Bre Pettis referred to the Digitizer as a “game changer” for the 3D printing movement and it’s not hard to see why. For the past two years now, MakerBot’s efforts have largely been about making the process of 3D printing as accessible as possible. 3D printing novices can get a feel for turning the contents of pre-produced files into actual physical objects.

The turntable can only support objects that are 3kg (or about 6.5lbs) or lighter, and you should ideally use the thing a very well-lit room. The Digitizer promises to be fast and easy, and at $1,400 it is priced well below competitive products such as the NextEngine 3D scanner or the new high resolution FROGScan system from Streamline Automation.

According to Makerbot, the Digitizer captures enough points to create about 200,000 triangles for each new 3D model. It can capture details as small as 0.5 mm, and surface depth as shallow as 0.5 mm. The dimensional accuracy of the MakerBot Digitizer’s is ± 2 mm, meaning that when you scan an object, the dimensions of your 3D model will be within 2 mm of your original object.

SOURCE  Makerbot, TechCrunch

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