The folks at Lynx Lab have launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the initial units of their “Lynx A Camera”. It’s designed to be a point and shoot 3D camera, capable of capturing 3D shapes as well as motion.
The Lynx A tries to put all the elements of 3D scanning in a single box: camera, sensors, heavy-duty data processing, software and interface. This is quite different from all other 3D scanning solutions we’ve seen, which typically involve multiple devices and software tools.
Pricing is variable, depending on the features included, at least during their Kickstarter campaign. The basic model, which includes the “Object Modeling Feature” goes for USD$1,999. A “3D Artists” version adds “Scene Modeling” for USD$2,699, while the ultimate “Hacker” version also includes motion capture for USD$3,499.
For 3D printer aficionados, we suspect the 3D modeling feature is the one of interest.
But this leads to a slight dilemma: if inexpensive 3D scanning is your only goal, why not use one of the several Microsoft Kinect-based solutions, which can produce comparable results at a price far lower than USD$1,999? There are two advantages provided by the Lynx A Camera over Kinect solutions: you don’t need a high-powered graphics card to process the scan in real time because it’s included in the Lynx A. Secondly, the Lynx A is totally portable. It’s a six pound unit that is easily toted around and thus ready for almost-instant scanning operations.
Lynx Lab’s Kickstarter campaign has already met their funding goal, so they are proceeding to manufacture. If you’re interested in portable 3D scanning, you might want to check them out.
Via Lynx Lab and Kickstarter
