French startup Manctl has created a working answer to the question, "Have you ever wanted to produce a full-colour 3D model of your house?" Its solution was to use Microsoft's Kinect for Windows, coupled with its own 3D mapping software.
Manctl's first product, Skanect, allows anyone with a Kinect to rotate it around a room, providing the Skanect software with visual information that it stitches together to form a complete 3D image.
Much like a computer-aided design (CAD) drawing, the user is then able to zoom in or out of, rotate and navigate an on-screen 3D version of whatever was scanned. "We're working on a scanner that lets you scan people, objects and rooms," co-founder and CTO Nicolas Burrus explained to Wired.co.uk this week. However, the product was developed from a tool created for more specific uses. "An orthotic company was looking for a solution to scan a foot in 3D for a low price," said Burrus. "We built a scanner for them and it turned out that using the appropriate software we can get good precision for a fraction of the price of what they had before. "We also built a scanner for a lingerie customer who wanted to make bra fittings. A lady moves around in front [of the Kinect] so we can precisely measure her size."
Skanect is the resulting commercial product of these two applications, which Wired.co.uk visited Manctl in Seattle this week to see in person.
Although still a work in process, the early results of the 3D room-scanning tool are impressive. Burrus rotated the Kinect 360 degrees around our demonstration room (a small office room in Microsoft's Westlake offices) for about 15 seconds. As he did so, a 3D image gradually appeared on the screen of the computer the Kinect was connected to. When he was finished, the software generated a 3D representation of the room, complete with the individuals intact. A video embedded in this story shows this actual demo taking place. "In real time you see a rough view," said Burrus, "but if you see a part is missing you can come back and scan the bit you missed. Then we generate the final model -- so it's a two-step process."
Motivation
Burrus explained that the motivation behind the product was frustration with the hurdles that face people needing to scan in 3D. There are two options available to them, he said: "You can either use complex modeling software that's used by the movie industry, or use a capturing device such as a laser scanner. This works, but costs [up to] $40,000 (£25,500), so it's not for the mass market."
Manctl is a startup comprising CTO Burrus, who holds a PhD in computer vision technologies, and CEO Nicolas Tisserand, formerly a software architect working with computer DJ applications. "We've been friends for ten years," said Burrus, "after meeting at university. "We're still figuring out our best business model, but what we definitely want to provide is a free version for consumers and enthusiasts to start scanning their children, their house, their animals and share it with their friends. "It'll be limited to online sharing; you can't post-process it, as that's for another category of people, like those in the prototyping industry, artists and people working in robotics."
Business model
It's this second category Burrus said will pay for his company's software, although the free version is already available for download from Manctl's website. The company will offer consulting services for customers who wish to make advance use of its software, including object- and room-scanning, object recognition and tracking, and controller-free human-computer interaction. This last example spawned a product called Body Clicks, a "hand-controlled mouse" for, ironically, Apple's Mac OS X, which Manctl states will be released soon.
Burrus explained that while the monochrome scanning performs well, the colour scanning is still a work in progress. "At this stage it's still not perfect, but we will go to market with colour.
It adds a lot of 'wow' effect when you see it in colour."
Manctl is one of 11 startups that won $20,000 (£12,300) of funding and support from Microsoft as part of its Kinect Accelerator program, the same as startup-in-law Ubi Interactive, and similarly remains independent as a business. "Our mission is to enable the masses to capture the world in 3D," said Burrus. Are you part of the masses? If so, you can start capturing the world in 3D by downloading the free software from Manctl's website.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
