Rendor Turns Your Single-Camera Smartphone Into A Real 3D Scanner

Using a piece of paper with a specially printed grid and a regular smartphone, Rendor may have just cracked the 3D scanning code. The system allows you to create a 3D scan of almost any object simply by taking video of it from every angle. The program interpolates the shape of the object based on how it is positioned on the grid and then generates a usable 3D file.

Although it’s not quite ready to ship just yet, it looks to be one of the best 3D-scanning tools I’ve seen. There are others out there, like the 3DSystems Sense and Autodesk’s 123D Catch app, but Rendor uses computer vision in a very specific way to create more accurate models.

Built by Replica Labs, the program uses only a single camera to render the object. As you can see from the video below, the front of the object was very nicely rendered, but because they didn’t spin around the back, the object is “connected” to the background. However, thanks to the printed sheet, they should be able to get a 360-degree view of the object and allow the system to assess bulges, creases and other aspects of 3D objects. Plus it looks cool.

The app should be ready in July, but you can sign up for beta access now.