Miraco scanning a boat floor

Can i use a miraco to template a white fiberglass boat floor

for sure, but you would probably be better off scanning indoor or on cloudy day. maybe also markers needed.

3D scanner is used to scan 3 dimensional volumes and floor is not just one of them .

The only way you can do it by placing reflective markers and use marker mode , you will need to use a lot of them and at least 6 cm apart , lots of work .

You need to scan it at night , cloudy day may be not enough for market mode as too much of infrared lighting will still reflects back . So one hour after sunset is more safe .

I think you will be better off with printed white markers like pyramids to add the needed features , but still you will need them a lot .

3D structured light scanners are not really made for this kind of job , possible yes but it will require some practice and proper settings of your scanned area .

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^^^ All good tips!!

Iā€™m currently experimenting with feature recognition targets for large flat horizontal surfaces. These tips are only if you are wanting dimensions for deck products. I was not looking for finite features or 3D printable results. And this worked for me, it may not for you?

Pyramids work well if you donā€™t place them all in the same orientation. Tip a few over on their sides. It helped. Cost is a factor if you want enough of them to cover a large boat deck for a single scan. I fabricated my own for testing.

I was also looking for any ā€˜existingā€™ products that had geometric features, could be purchased in bulk, and reasonably economical. I found that game jacks (see link) worked well. I spray painted them with a flat white paint. And you get 120 of them for $10 + shipping at oriental trading.
Jacks Picture

Gel coat boat decks definitely need a coating if you want to combat the reflective light that occurs. Even happens indoors with minimal lighting. 3D spray is out of the question economically. Too large of a space and spraying the entire deck at once is not possible. Youā€™ll track it walking on it. (this will happen with any method of spray you use) And on an extensively long scan it will partially dehydrate before you get to the end.

Two methods Iā€™ve tried.

Corn starch & baking soda in an alcohol emulsion thin enough to use in a hand held electric spray gun. Takes a while to dry and you have to segment the scan into areas to eliminate tracking. Over do target spacing at the segmented area laps.

Same starch/soda mix (without alcohol) in a hand pump garden duster. This was much easier than the above but takes more powder from wind blown. And the dust cloud was annoying to avoid. Wear a mask.

Iā€™m trying diatomaceous earth (silicon dioxide) this week to see if itā€™s strange Reflectivity - Non reflectivity features help or hinder?

No matter which of the above you use ā€¦ you have a clean up job. Good thing is all of them are biodegradable and non toxic when you wash them off.

If Revopoint were to create a Structured Light Scanner specifically aimed at the market of EVA decking scans for boats, theyā€™d make the use of $20,000 digitizerā€™s obsolete.

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Thanks for the advices! Would you mind sharing some pictures of the scans you got by using your method?

The reason Iā€™m at this point in 3D SLS is because I took the advice of web based ā€œuserā€ information. My bad. It was a good start, but not a reliable source to base a knowledgeable conclusion in choosing 3D scanning methods for ā€˜specificā€™ uses. In reality, the incomplete nature of ā€˜how toā€™ web influence is detrimental to that objective because it lacks solid validity.

Iā€™m now (unwillingly but intrigued) knee deep into this 3D technology so Iā€™m going by what my 50+ years as a tinker/inventor has taught me. Use a structured approach. If not completely scientific ā€¦ get as close as you can ā€¦ and then share your findings. Ideation, research, concept development.

Itā€™s the reason I said, ā€œAnd this worked for me, it may not for you?ā€ I still have a long list of products & methods Iā€™m going to investigate (ie: florescence, inter-reflections, diffusion, overlays, etc.) to enhance featureless SLS.

So in lieu of joining the ā€œI did thisā€ crowd and misleading someone, Iā€™m going to refrain from posting the progress without having confirmation. Repetitive consistent results are a must. Iā€™ll be glad to pass on what I know is getting me close to the objective and save a comprehensive comparison post of my analysis for when Iā€™m done.

Plus, as Iā€™ve found in the past, there may be an product invention in this research??? A $40 can of spray ā€¦ lol.

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Hi, Yes, I have done many boat floors, but you do need markers for any large flat surface.
I made this 3D printed Scan Marker net, it works quite well, or you can also make ā€œMarker Tapesā€ out of non sticky flat plastic strips. Just arrange them on the deck, scan it, then remove later.
Regards,
Mike, Scan2model.com.au


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That net is intuitive design genius! Creates a grid, reusable, lightweight, etcā€¦ That concept should win an award.

So are those are 3D printed pucks with line holes in them? Or are they 2 piece snap together?

I made the net with 3D printed parts that snap together.
The nets are commercially available from AESUB, but they are about $1000 AUD and arent available in Australia, so I made my own.

That net price is unreasonable. Iā€™m going to attempt fabricating a small net for testing. Iā€™m going to use resin snap together clothes buttons in 10 or 12mm black. What grid size net did you use?

Thanks again!

Hi @DDRDan preferably black nylon without cotton or any organic blend .

The size depends of your scanner FOV , how smaller the FOV how smaller the grid needs to be .

For example Mini 2 needs maximum 3x3 cm and Range 2 needs maximum 8x8 cm grid in Body/Large object mode .

You canā€™t use the grid net on a flat surface, it works only on at least slightly curved surfaces , if the points are too symmetrical the scanner can get confused and lose tracking .

There is actually a LOT of work to create one of these nets, so that could be why the price is high.
I have made two, each with 200 reflectors. Each ā€œPylonā€ is 20mm high, and also has a 5x2mm magnet in the base to keep the net taught and off the surface.

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Thanks for those grid sizes.