Brandeis Design and Innovation

‘Single Camera Automated Photogrammetry Platform’ (SCAPP) with Autodesk/Brandeis Techne Group

Along with Professor Alexandra Ratzlaff as part of the Techne group as residents at the Autodesk Technology Center in Boston, BDI has been creating a new robotic device designed to automate the process of handheld photogrammetry scanning. robot picture

 

We have fabricated an initial prototype ‘Single Camera Automated Photogrammetry Platform’ (SCAPP) with the final designs and methodology to be available for reproduction through an open-source platform. The SCAPP is intended to be relatively low-cost and easily reproduced as an alternative to other digital imaging equipment.  Archaeology has numerous limitations in the scanning process including: difficult types and shapes of materials to be scanned, objects that are often unable to be moved prior to scanning, and major environmental factors that eliminate the feasibility of using conventional, expensive, sensitive, lab-only equipment. The SCAPP attempts to resolve these issues as a

 relatively light-weight, inexpensive, and portable automated rig for single camera data collection.  This devices allows fragile objects to be scanned before they are excavated and uses a technology that has the potential to handle some exotic materials other scanning technologies would struggle with or be completely unable to capture.  The SCAPP also allows consistent and repeatable results while minimizing the user error and user fati
gue that often comes with the photogrammetry process. Our goal in the Techne Group is to “Science the past” - so much photogrammetry is based on artistic decisions, we want to “science” this problem. We have found that by normalizing our data acquisition, we can be agnostic about our processing methodology: cleaner data results in cleaner renders regardless of the software used. Learn more at https://www.sciencethepast.com/