FARO, maker of some of the most sophisticated of scanning systems, has announced plans to acquire SiteScape, one of the simplest. In fact, the SiteScape app may be the easiest and most fun of any reality capture application ever devised.
The SiteScape app is available for free from Apple’s App Store. Using it, we were able to get a 3D image in less than 5 minutes on an iPhone -- and most of that time was spent downloading the app and setting up a (free) account. Granted, the model is discontinuous, just a point cloud, really. But unlike other point clouds that look like the Milky Way seen through the Hubble Space Telescope, the stars are in color and, unlike photogrammetry applications, they are at the right location in 3D space. You may have to zoom out and squint a little to see the model.
But here we are looking a gift horse in the mouth. Using SiteScape doesn’t cost a penny. You can use it with the iPhone or iPad you already have. And it works.
You may have not realized you had a LiDAR scanner in your pocket, but that recent models of Apple’s phones and tablets have it. It’s what your Apple device uses to “see” in the dark for low-light photos, scan your face to log in for the Measure app that lets you use it like a laser measuring tool.
"We are pleased to add SiteScape and its groundbreaking 3D LiDAR scanning software to our portfolio of reality capture solutions," said Michael Burger, FARO President and CEO. "With millions of LiDAR enabled mobile devices already in the market, the addition of SiteScape opens up a significant population of users to the benefits of FARO's reality capture solutions."
Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
What Does SiteScape Do?
SiteScape let’s Apple iPad and iPhone users use their devices which are equipped with low-resolution LiDAR, to create point clouds models. These point clouds can be read into CAD and BIM programs that can import RCP (Autodesk), E57 (vendor neutral), and PLY (polygon file or Stanford triangle) formats.
SiteScape points are accurate to plus or minus one inch, according to the SiteScape website, similar to the accuracy of Apple’s Measure app.
SiteScape will become part of FARO’s Sphere, a cloud-based reality capture platform. Whether it will continue with the SiteScape branding or be absorbed into FARO’s brand is not known at this point. FARO currently offers FARO Stream as part of the FARO Sphere platform which does both control the FARO Focus laser scanner as well as input low-res data directly (similar to SiteScape?), as well as integrate 360 degree photos (photogrammetry), video, mobile mapping and terrestrial laser scanning.
How Much?
The app is free to load and use initially but once you’ve had your fun and try to use it for project work, you will have to pay $50 a month for the Pro version. Annual discounts, multiple seat licenses and more detail are available here.
About FARO Technologies
The Florida-based (Lake Mary, outside of Orlando) FARO Technologies calls itself the global leader in 4D digital reality solutions spanning multiple industries such as AEC, operations and maintenance (O&M) and public safety analytics.