Scan

Prepare

Since Artec Leo is a self-inclusive device featuring computing and graphics processing units, you don’t need to connect it to a PC running Artec Studio while scanning. A built-in tiltable display allows you to focus on scanning and eliminates the need to have a laptop in your hands.

You may want to use Artec Studio later to process the scanned data.

Caution

Always grip the scanner by its handle; use your other hand for extra support when necessary.

About Color Overlays

Leo colors the scene that it scans. This coloring, or overlay can be made on the basis of:

• Scan sufficiency

• Distance to the object.

About Tiltable Display

When scanning particular objects or regions, you may need to tilt or rise your Leo scanner. In this case, the display content may disappear from your sight. What comes in handy is the ability to tilt the display to observe the scanning scene:

1. Put your fingers into the finger recesses near the display.

2. Drag both ends of the display to tilt it down.

Figure 3 Tilting the scanner display.

To broaden your user experience with displaying 3D content, you may as well employ an external mobile device.

Prepare Object and Surroundings

Before scanning, ensure that the objects meet the following requirements:

• They must be stationary.

• They should have geometry and/or texture features.

• They should have no black, transparent or reflective surfaces.

• They should be uniformly lit.

• There is enough space around the object for you to scan it.

If the object doesn’t meet all the requirements, it can still be scanned. You may need to prepare its surface (see the table below).

Transparent, shiny, reflective	Dust with anti-glare spray
Thin, fine or repetitive features	Apply masking tape to the background and/or draw X’s on it
Black glossy	Dust with anti-glare spray
Black matte	Increase Texture brightness

Note

In the HD mode, you can capture dark or shiny surfaces in high resolution, in their original shape and with no extra steps. See HD Mode & HD Reconstruction for details.

About Targets

Typically, a target is a round sticker that has a black ring with a white circle in the center. The targets are placed on the object being scanned to ease identification of the various regions. Using the target-assisted scanning allows you to scan larger areas in one session, improve the accuracy of captured surfaces and boost productivity by reducing postprocessing time. You do not need to align the scanned surfaces after scanning, so you can immediately proceed to fusion (see Artec Studio Manual for details). The only downside of this method is the necessity of preparation.

To enable the target-assisted scanning with Leo, you need to perform the following steps:

1. Prepare a special target file in the OBC format that contain the coordinates of the targets. Such a file can be obtained, for example, by means of the Scan Reference kit (see Scanning with photogrammetry for details). Note that starting from the 1.8 version Leo is able to work with sparse target data.

2. Upload the target file to Leo and make it a default one (see Enable Target-Assisted Scanning for details).

After that, you can proceed to the Target-Assisted Scanning.

Scan

To start a new scan,

1. Tap New project or press the start/stop button . Artec Leo will start preview, i.e. building surfaces without recording them.

2. Adjust either parameter as necessary.

3. Direct the scanner at the object.

4. Practice your movements and assess the quality of the surface being reconstructed on the screen.

5. Once you’re ready, tap or press the start/stop button .

6. Scan the object from all possible sides.

7. Tap or press the start/stop button .

8. Rotate or turn the object upside down to scan the missing regions (go to step 3).

9. Tap in the upper-left corner if you are done with the scan.

Once you have recorded a scan, it is added to the project (see Project Structure).

Figure 4 Scan screen.

Losing and Resuming Tracking

As you move the scanner, it captures a series of frames. Leo uses features in overlapping areas of these frames to automatically align them. This process is called tracking. If Leo becomes unable to continue building an object surface, it enters the tracking lost mode. It may happen, if:

• You move the scanner very fast.

• Scanner’s field of view contains insufficient surface area.

Leo in the lost tracking mode displays message: Point at scanned area.

Figure 5 Tracking lost.

Resume Scanning

To resume scanning,

1. Direct the scanner at a region you’ve already captured, maintaining the original scanner orientation toward this region.

2. If Leo recognizes the region, it will display the Ready to scan message and correctly orient the scene on the screen.

3. Press the start/stop button to continue recording. Leo will continue recording data in a new addition.

Figure 6 Leo has recognized the region and is ready to continue scanning.

Alternatively, you can enable Leo to automatically continue scanning after tracking is lost and restored. To enable this:

1. Go to Settings → Scanner → Scanning

2. Turn on the Continue scanning once tracking is restored toggle.

This setting allows the scanner to automatically continue recording data, after you bring the scanner back to a recognizable region (i.e., after tracking is restored). You don’t have to to press for confirmation.

Pause and Resume Scan

While scanning, you may need to pause capturing for various reasons. Press the start/stop button to this end.

There are two ways to resume your scan:

Addition

If you want to continue scanning the same scene, create a new addition to a scan. A successfully created addition will be aligned with the previously captured 3D data.

To continue scanning in the same scan, follow the procedure covered in Resume Scanning.

New Scan in Project

If you intend to add a new scan that relates to the project, but either of the cases below is applicable, consider adding a new scan:

• Scanning scene has changed.

• You flipped the object.

To add a new scan,

1. Open the required project.

2. Tap Add scan.

3. Point the scanner at the object and press the start/stop button .

HD Mode & HD Reconstruction

HD mode scanning is an AI-powered scanning technology for ultra-sharp, clean, and detail-rich scans.

Key advantages of the HD mode:

• scanning with a high resolution of up to 0.2 mm

• broad range of objects that can be scanned flawlessly and in high detail: from smaller, intricate parts like valve handles, to larger areas with fine details like car engines

• little to no noise in raw data for cleaner post-processed data and saved time for your final 3D model

• capability to capture dark or shiny surfaces in high resolution, in their original shape and with no extra steps

Up until version 1.7, Artec Leo enabled you to capture HD data, which had to be reconstructed in Artec Studio to give you the complete surface geometry. Starting from version 1.8, you will be able to preview the reconstructed model (HD scans) in Artec Leo itself, without the need to export it to Artec Studio. Keep in mind that the preview of the reconstructed model has no impact on the data which you send to Artec Studio.

The HD reconstruction in Artec Leo is off by default. When you start your project, you will see the Resolution button at the lower-right corner. Tap on Resolution before scanning, and select an appropriate HD resolution to capture HD frames and enable HD reconstruction.

The three HD resolution modes available are:

1. SD - no HD frames recorded.

2. Normal - every 8th frame recorded, will be HD.

3. High - every 4th frame recorded, will be HD.

4. Ultra - every 2nd frame recorded, will be HD.

The higher the resolution, the larger the project will be and more time will be required for its reconstruction. The speed of scanning might also vary depending on the resolution.

Figure 7 Scanning resolution options.

Then you perform the scanning as usual. Once you stop scanning and even exit the current project, HD reconstruction will continue to run in the background until you start another scan in a new project.

Figure 8 Project with HD data.

Note

It is advised not to rotate or change the position of the object during reconstruction. If you do so by mistake, the reconstruction will pause and resume again.

Configure Scanning

You can set for scanning either of the following parameters.

Texture

If you want to see texture while scanning,

1. Press the start/stop button to start Preview.

2. Ensure that Texture mode is activated.

Note

During scan, Leo displays texture blended with quality overlay. To observe pure texture, stop scanning.

Texture Flash

To enable texture flash and get a bright, softly-lightened image,

1. Press the start/stop button to start Preview.

2. Ensure that Texture flash is on.

Turn it off if you cannot use it due to circumstances. Note that turning the flash off must be compensated for by sufficient ambient lighting or increasing the value of Exposure. Keep in mind that high exposure will result in slower performance.

When Texture flash option is turned on, the Exposure setting will not be displayed. Instead, you can adjust the Brightness of the output image.

Base Removal

Once imported in Artec Studio, scans from Leo can be cleared from base, i.e. flat surface that supports object being scanned. The following recommendations might help you decide whether you need this option.

Objects to scan	Options
Distinct vertical object	Base removal is on
Entire scene, floor, table	Base removal is off
Object sticking out of a wall	Base removal is on and Horizontal base removal only off

To enable base removal,

1. Press the start/stop button|redbut| to start Preview mode.

2. Ensure that Base removal is turned on.

3. Direct the scanner at the flat surface which you intend to leave out.

4. Press the start/stop button to start scanning.

Figure 9 Detected base.

Before you import project, ensure that the Launch base removal for Leo scans checkbox is selected in Artec Studio settings.

Exclude Background

This feature enables you to remove any unwanted background in the entire 3D space surrounding the object during scanning. Naturally, the surroundings also includes the base, and therefore this feature removes the base as well. Note that, the Base Removal option disappears from Leo screen when this feature is enabled.

To exclude background in your scans:

1. Turn on the Exclude background for new scans in Settings.

2. Press start/stop button to start Preview mode.

3. Ensure that Exclude Background is turned on.

4. Direct the scanner at the object you intend to scan. The red areas on the window are excluded as unwanted background.

5. Press start/stop button to start scanning.

Figure 10 Option to exclude background.

You can adjust the Sensitivity parameter depending on how much of the surrounding environment you want to leave out. The Show ‘exclude background’ sensitivity setting displays the Sensitivity slider on your scan window in the Preview mode, which can be adjusted before scanning. However, if this option is disabled, you will be able to adjust the sensitivity after scanning is completed. To adjust sensitivity after scanning, click on the Exclude Background button that appears after scanning is completed.

Before you import project, ensure that the Exclude background for Leo scans checkbox is selected in Artec Studio settings.

Texture Brightness

You can adjust texture brightness for scans.

1. Tap New project or Add scan. Leo starts Preview.

2. Direct the scanner at the surface with rich texture which you can use to assess texture quality.

3. Move the Texture brightness slider left and right to set an optimal value (as a percentage).

Scanning Range

Leo’s default scanning range is from 0.35 to 1.2 meters. Optimal distance for most objects is about 0.5 meters which corresponds to the middle of this range. Surfaces recorded at the far distances might be of bad quality. You may want Leo to cull these distant surfaces, i.e. shrink its field of view by adjusting position of the farthest plane:

1. Press start/stop button to enter Preview mode.

2. Move the Range slider left and right to set an optimal value.

Texture frames of the object (or parts of the object) scanned from a distance of more than 1.2 meters are not recorded in Leo. These missing texture frames then appear as black empty spaces when the scan is opened in Artec Studio.

Quality Overlay

Once you start scanning (after a preview), the scene will color indicating the scan sufficiency.

Red	Insufficiently scanned area 1, distant object, fast movements
Orange	Satisfactory scanned area
Green	Well-scanned area

1

Holes and thin edges may remain red and orange even if thoroughly scanned. This happens because these regions are likely to have smaller resolution than the remaining parts of the object.

See also

Texture

Distance Overlay

Distance overlay helps identify an optimal scanning distance. It colors surfaces using different colors depending on how close the scanner is to the object (see the table below).

Figure 11 Distance overlay.

Transparent	Out of the sight
Red	0.35 m
Orange	0.4 m
Green	0.45–0.85 m
Blue	1–1.2 m
Deep blue	Above 1.2 m

See also

Scanning Range.

Target-Assisted Scanning

To perform scanning with targets, a target file with information about the targets to use must first be uploaded into Leo and selected as the default one (see Enable Target-Assisted Scanning for details).

Then follow these steps:

1. Until Leo does not see the targets from the selected target file in its field of view, its screen will be like the one presented in Figure 12.

   

   Figure 12 Target-assisted scanning mode is set but Leo does not see targets in its field of view.

   Point the scanner at the object with the targets. When Leo recognizes the targets, you will see them on the preview screen.

   

   Figure 13 Leo has recognized the targets and is ready to scan.

2. Before you start scanning, you can select another target file. To do this, tap Targets at the lower-right corner and then select the desired target file from the list. Select None to not use targets when scanning.

   Note

   Once the scanning has started, you will no longer be able to change the target file: the Targets button will be locked.

3. Tap or press start/stop button and start scanning.

   During the scanning process, the target marks should be visible on the screen, as they were on the preview screen (Figure 13). If Leo does not see the targets in its field of view, then the tracking will be lost, the recording will be interrupted and the warning Point at the scanned area will be displayed.

   

   Figure 14 Leo has lost tracking when scanning with targets.

4. If the tracking is lost, you can do one of the following:

   • Point the scanner at the targets again. When Leo recognizes the targets, its screen will be like the one presented in the figure below and you can continue scanning.

   

   Figure 15 Leo has recognized the targets and is ready to continue scanning.

   • Tap or press start/stop button to stop scanning.