When you first started 3D scanning, which part did you find the most challenging? 
A. Scanning process
B. Tracking
C. Marker placement
D. Post-processing
Or was some other part tricky for you? Share it with us in the comments!
Hi,
For me, itās āD.ā
I sometimes find it very difficult to find the right setting or option for the current requirement.
But I think the more often you do it, the better the results will be 
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Definitly B. When I started with 3D scanning I had lots of failed scans because of loosing track.
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For me it is always C ā¦ I donāt have any love for markers placement and removal 
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Thereās only one thing worst than putting all the markers on and thats taking them off!
For me scanning 1mm wide x 3.5mm deep piston ring grooves. The rest of the piston comes out great but the grooveā¦ Grrrr 
Any ideas with that would be appreciated.
I think I had a hard time with tracking and loosing tracking. It took me a little while to figure out how to move the scanner, direction and speed to maintain tracking. Getting to know if your part is feature rich enough or you need to add more external features to allow the scanner to maintain tracking.
Markers definitely help on that side. I also hate putting them on and taking them off. I try to use reusable markers (on magnets) or on 3d printed pieces I can place on or around objects to limit the actual number of stickers I need to put on.
I see no mention of consistent lighting.
My scanner is on the way and the environment that I will be scanning will need me to bring lighting to scan in some of my projects. Also if I go to others for work and they donāt have that available then I have to make the environment fall within a tolerance.
I know it may be a bit of a stretch to compare laser scanners to car tires but a car gets no better performance consistency than tires in its own field.
Lighting for the scanner to work will want maximum consistency as well.
There would not be scanner sprays if this were not the case.
From my research itās looking like around 400 lumens of evenly diffused light at around the 4500-5000k range.
Iām treating it like photography until I hit the sweet spot and find what works for consistent results and save time.
Just thought I would mention it as I have not seen anyone post about lighting.
I went with NEEWER BASICS NL-120B Bi Color LED Panel Light + Tripodsā and NEEWER CA013 6" Camera Suction Mount with Ball Head Magic Arm. To cover lighting on surfaces and elevated positions.
Hopefully people who have tracking issues just had inconsistent lighting and it was not the scanner itself!
Revopoint s ambers do not need any environmental lighting as it is not used for anything while scanning , you can be completely in the darkness.
Lighting is only needed for calibration because the RGB camera is taking a pictures, or you need to capture Color DATA for textures , for everything else darkness is your best friend.
Why? Because Revopoint scanners are not a photogrammetry scanners , the the Depth sensors only capture specific light length and your environment light is not part of it.
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Thank you for informing me of this @PUTV
Then the lighting I bought shale be for me to use and see what I am doing or record some of my work for more work.
So while on that note will I need scanner spray still if I purchased the marker block kit?
Also I was considering buying Musou Black and making my own scanning board with markers. Iāve heard thereās a sheen on a lot of black backgrounds that people work with and sometimes sprays might need to be used.
If Musou absorbs 99.4% of light would this complicate tracking against the item Iām scanning?
I was curious if it would use less RAM for post processing by removing anything that reflects visible light and emphasize the project to be scanned through the contrast differences.
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Thatās actually a great idea! I was thinking about it as well since it would eliminate micro reflections that creates noises .
Personally I use black silicone mat but this would be definitely better .
Yes , less noises and unwanted areas will reduce also the processing speed for that matter also the RAM , I would recommend that after fusing you manually save the project and close the software and reopen it to free out the RAM if it is critical to you . This way you get extra free RAM you can use.
Spray is needed if you have issues with the surface absorbing too much light , some materials regarding if itās color can absorb the laser light or infrared light , that include materials made using oil like black plastics , waxes , silicone and any other material that have a high IOR ( index of refraction )
For example black cotton will scan as good as white cotton despite its color because itās IOR is very low.
Scanner Spray also helps keeping the surface equal if the object has contrasting colors like for example black and white objects . Shining metal and high reflective objects. Surfaces that absorb blue light like red, green, yellow colors etc .. all depends if you use infrared or blue light scanner if course .
I have always a 3D spray under hand as it can make things much easier and scan thing better .
The marker kit just help in stabilization while scanning in marker mode .
Cool cool!
When using the software is there any go to source or tutorial on where I can export the scan and start modifying for reverse engineering?
Iām aiming for open source options at the moment to edit.
For the time being Iād rather put expenses into tangible tools or material instead of software unless thereās no open source solutions available.
In terms of reverse engineering tools, you get what you pay for. A maker license for fusion360 is prob one of the cheapest options. You can use blender, but thatās not really parametric modeling. It depends on what you are trying to achieve with reverse engineering.
Rebopoint has own Revo Design software integrated as next step in the workflow but the license is not free .
I am afraid you will not find anything good for reverse engineering that is free.
But that will depends on what you really want to archive.
For engineering tasks requiring precise, parameter-driven adjustments, CAD software like FreeCAD or Fusion 360 is typically used.
I just received my scanner in the mail.
I got a job referral on the spot from bringing in the scanner to a business before I even unboxed the scannerā¦
A customer was walking out from a cost decline as I was waiting to present the scanner to the owner of the business and now Iām asked to show up at 11am at request by the owner of the shop to scan the customers original item to keep the shops sale with service.
The shop and his customer are ok with me making a working prototype.
The direct to customer price to get him in the shop was going to be held hostage over a $700 ABS part even before the shop could get their cut from their work.
Iām going with PPA-CF most likely as peopleās ears perk when you mention the words carbon fiber out loud.
Now that I have a paying customer freeCad is a no go as I want to be as impressionable as possible to the owner for more work.
I see that Revopoint Geomagic Design X does not come with a trial option like QuickSurface or fusion does. Also it appears that Revopoint3D and KVS Ltd partnered to make Revo Design.
For now I installed a trial of QuickSurface Pro and Iām going to milk it for what itās worth until seeing what Geomagic X design is all about after some revenue from some of these projects to cover the license.
The best thing of all is I get to scan a part that can potentially be reused for resale again.