3-D scan
IN PHOTO: Jeska Stolle tests the three-dimensional (3D) face scanner used to register individual details of passengers at the SAC Siemens airport centre in Fuerth near Nuremberg on March 30, 2007. The airport centre opened in December 2005 and presents the latest technologies available from Siemens for all airports and official areas where interior security is required. REUTERS/Michaela Rehle (GERMANY)

A new inexpensive 3-D camera said to overcome environmental limitations has recently been developed by a group of engineers at Northwestern University. The camera promises to capture high-quality images both indoor and outdoor, beating Microsoft’s Kinect.

The two generations of Kinect project light patterns that are perceived and processed to evaluate object depth at each pixel of the sensor. This mechanisms works fast but lacks detailed quality compared to expensive single-point scanners. These scanners utilise laser technology to scan the entirety of a scene.

Study head Oliver Cossairt, assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering, named his new innovation Motion Contrast 3D Laser Scanner, or MC3D. It uses the technology of single-point scanners, with the human eye as its model. With this, the camera performs selective scanning of scenes that were modified in some way. This technology enables faster processing and higher-quality results.

Another notable difference between Kinect and MC3D is their abilities to take images under the sunlight. The Kinect often produces poor photos when exposed under the sun because the projected light patterns of the device is subdued by the natural light emitted. Conversely, MC3D performs efficiently even under the sunlight because it generates light that is brighter than that of the surroundings.

The MC3D has great potential in helping the industries of science and technology, particularly in the fields that often utilise 3-D scenes, Cossairt said. Robotics, bioinformatics, automated manufacturing and augmented reality are just some of the fields that can reap benefits from Cossairt’s invention. Furthermore, MC3D shows promise in the aspects of navigation, as it can be installed in any transportation device.

Cossairt’s invention has garnered early praises as his team received a Google Faculty Research Award. With this, their invention would be incorporated in an autonomous transportation medium, where it will equip real-time 3-D scans using minimal amount of power compared to other technologies.

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