So with all of these subtractive and additive CNC devices, its nice to have additional ways to create objects. I wanted to try 3d scanning. There are open source, DIY, and commercial variants. The only open source one I know of is the makerbot cyclops which uses structured light and I really wanted to try the laser method. The commercial variant I saw recently demonstrated by Bre cost about $30k which is out of my price range. There is a DIY option called the David Laser Scanner that looked promising. You need a webcam, a laser, and their software. You can use a trial of their software at low res to get a feel for it. I picked up a $10 laser off of ebay and reused an old webcam to get started. Below you can see the setup.
The pattern is a PDF that you print. I picked up some foam core from a local craft store and constructed the scanning set. Below you can see a video of the actual scanning taking place.
Next I’m going to mount the laser to an old meade tripod so that it will skew consistently so that I don’t have to do it by hand. Please look for updates to this blog with pictures of the scanned image. Then I’ll try and print it on my Prusa 
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