Using the Structure Sensor the new Itseez3d app promises to turn your iPad into a high-powered consumer 3D scanner.
The Structure 3D scanner from Occipital is a great personal 3D scanner, however it’s limited to the processing power of your iPad. But when you use the scanner with the Itseez3d app the rendering is all done in the cloud. So while you scan the person or object that you want to capture, all of the data is processed and sent back to you as a finished 3D scan quicker and with much greater detail than the iPad would ever be able to deliver on its own.
Take a look at their promotional video:
And here are a few 3D renders to play around with:
Itseez3d is the first company to fully utilize the Structure software dev kit and they really turned it on its ear by relying on the cloud and not the iPad’s internal processor to handle the scanning workload. It’s a smart bit of programming that takes what is generally a tedious and time consuming part of the scanning process and seems to make it relatively fast and reliable.
Occipital is really pushing their SDK, so this is not going to be the first 3D scanning app that you see using their technology. The only limitation seems to be the fact that they’ve tethered themselves to the iPad. However it seems that Occipital is beginning to understand that limitation and is offering CAD specs so that you can custom create your own brackets and 3D print them. And they will soon be offering a standalone unit this September. They’re also going to be offering new 3D models so you can print brackets to make your Structure fit on an iPhone and even Oculus Rift.
Currently the app can be downloaded from the iTunes App Store for free and you can purchase your Structure for $499 for the iPad Air, iPad Mini or the 4th Gen iPad.
