Scaning hardware object showcase & questions about workflow

[Missgeneralidea]

Hello, I’m trying to replace a broken part and reverse engineering the process through pop2. I’m a noob at this, so bare with me on my never ending questions. The ultimate goal is to have it 3d printed. I have given up on the idea of getting one complete scan on the pop2. It’s just not possible for me right now at this stage, the program loses track too easily, and it’s definitely not as user intuitive as the company proclaims in their videos. I will be asking tones of questions each broken up in section and hopefully this could be helpful to people who have or want to buy a pop2.

Image #1 of what I want scanned (hardware object).

Image #2 Revo Scan (scans itself using POP2).
(trouble using the more tab again, will upload shortly.)

Image #3 Revo Studio (scan and aligned using revostudio).
I’ve merged two scans and didn’t fill holes.

Questions about REVO SCAN scanning workflow:

1.) What is the best workflow procedure that people do when piecing several scans together? Would you scan all sides i.e. top, bottom side A, side B, front and back then aligned in revo-studio? This is alot of scans, I found that one I tried aligning more than 2 scans the alignment would distort even in the markers were placed at the right points.

2.) Should you always hit “fuse points together” after each scan? Unclear in the procedure and the purpose

3.) What’s up with the batch processing? Must you always bacth process before moving to the RevoStudio app? I tried exporting the files, and it seems like you must batch process no matter what, as you can’t open the files in any other program? I’m not understanding the logic behind this step and wonder why we have to do this after we finish a scan.

4.) Does anyone have problems with the ‘more’ tab in the model list section on the home page in RevoScan? Mine glitches all the time, and I have sent 2 bug requests to Revopoint and haven’t heard back (I am suing the latest software). What is frustrating is that I can’t even delete/rename a file, especially if the files aren’t batch processed first, I’m not sure what s going on.

5.) Are people having trouble exiting the program after a scan? I posted this before about once being at 100%, and then it takes several minutes to activate the page again. I usually have to exit the program completely to get back to the home page. It’s bizarre and inefficient process. Again, wondering if other people are experiencing the same thing.

Questions about RevoStudio (post-processing) workflow:

1.) Would you first “clean” (cleaning to me=smooth/isolate and simplify) each scan individually in RevoStudio, AND then you would align together the scans? Or do you merge/align each scan (.ply files) align them without “cleaning” them, AND then you would do this after the alignment. This workflow procedure is unclear, and we all know there is no adequate (in-depth) user manual created by RevoPoint for both the hardware and software programs.

2.) Do you clean/smooth/isolate and simply everything first in points tab section, then mesh them together? I’m confused with the logical step breakdown of what to do with each scan.

3.) Filling holes. I’ve tried filling holes on this scan and nothing really seems adequate, any suggestions on filling holes?

4.) Any suggestions on the scans? I’m planning on “cleaning up” the scans as much possible before moving them to meshlab/ cloudcompare and then another CAD modelling program (rhino 7).

Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

Edit: I accidentally posted before finishing

[JeffLindstrom]

Questions about REVO SCAN scanning workflow:

1.) What is the best workflow procedure that people do when piecing several scans together? Would you scan all sides i.e. top, bottom side A, side B, front and back then aligned in revo-studio? This is alot of scans, I found that one I tried aligning more than 2 scans the alignment would distort even in the markers were placed at the right points.

It is possible to scan, pause, re-position the object and resume scanning. However, the scanner will need to see enough overlap to align the new scan data with the existing point cloud.

If you plan ahead to make all the scans and postpone the time-intensive processing for later, then scan, Stop and Complete without the Automatic Fuse operation, followed by a return to the Preview window (click the “< Back” button near the top on the right side). Specify a new scan project and repeat until all your scanning is done. NOTE: You can only do this on a computer. The Android and iPhone versions require you to perform a Fuse operation at the least in order to have a file that can be saved and worked on at a later time.

2.) Should you always hit “fuse points together” after each scan?

Fusing will combine data into a point cloud. With memory-limited devices (4GB of RAM, for instance), the Fuse operation will free up memory and allow you to continue scanning the object in the same file. In the computer versions of Revo Scan, you can Stop & Complete a scan and return to the Preview window to specify a new scan, leaving the Fuse & Mesh operations to be performed later in Revo Studio.

3.) What’s up with the batch processing?

No, a batch operation is not necessary. It’s just an option to control the workflow as described in 1.) above. If you want, you can scan, Stop, Complete, Fuse & Mesh one file at a time, all in Revo Scan (although Revo Studio will allow higher-quality settings).

5.) Are people having trouble exiting the program after a scan?

I just click on the Kill Program icon at the upper right of the program window, then approve the prompt.

Questions about RevoStudio (post-processing) workflow:

1.) Would you first “clean” (cleaning to me=smooth/isolate and simplify) each scan individually in RevoStudio, AND then you would align together the scans?

I use the Overlap function on the Fused objects, usually several times to get the resulting count down below 1,000 (or 0, if I have the time) at all three distances.

While I have been Aligning multiple files before Meshing them, I have read that others are getting better results by Meshing first, followed by Alignment and then making a Point Cloud from the Mesh (Revo Studio supposedly makes the vertices be more ordered than what you get from the scanner; I haven’t verified that in my own scans, but my workflow may not be optimal).

Just remember to Align before Fill Holes.

2.) Do you clean/smooth/isolate and simply everything first in points tab section, then mesh them together?

Yes, as needed.

3.) Filling holes.

Filling smaller holes usually doesn’t cause a problem. Select the algorithm type (‘Flat’, ‘Tangent’, etc.) depending on the object’s surface. A large hole filled with the Tangent setting will usually have an odd result but who knows… it might be ‘artistic’.

[Erked]

The more you experiment and practice with the scanner will help you to find your own workflow. Jeff did a great job with his advice. There are lots of variables with scanning. I find myself using several different workflows for different items I scans. Enjoy the journey.

[Missgeneralidea]

@JeffLindstrom Thanks Jeff! I really appreciate you taking the time to clarify all this for me. I’m spending these next few weeks really learning what is possible but to be honest, it will mainly be in the post-processing. I’m not sure about pop2 yet. I’ll have to scan more tests and see. The alignment issue is horrible (expereience or not) the program isn’t great.

I am finding that as a newbie, where do you begin the most challenging part. It’s too reliant on the community when I feel revopoint should spen more time on documents helping with the learning curve of 3d scanning.

I spent the day trying out cloud compare and meshlab and I think I will stick with getting the grasp of the meshlab program. I tried editing in meshlab then bringing it in to Rhino 7 to check the meshes for 3d printing and it keeps saying ‘bad mesh’. I’ll be uploading more pictures later today.

Also, in case you haven’t sourced this information yet, I found these sites helpful for meshlab
It’s really hard to get some good reading material rather than another youtube video. I prefer at times, reading rather than sifting through the videos on youtube.

I found this site helpful:

https://meshroom-manual.readthedocs.io/en/v19.01.45/more/view_edit/view_edit.html

For now, the workflow is scan-use revo-scan for minor cleaning then meshlab. I still bring the file into another CAD after that.

Thanks again for writing me back. You’re awesome!

And @Erked I laughed out loud with “enjoy the journey”, I am NOT enjoying the journey!

[Erked]

I’m sorry to hear that. I was not trying to be funny. Everyone I know, including myself have problems at first. It does get better if you keep at it and even enjoyable.