Get Ready To 3D Print With A Kinect Sensor And A Web Browser

Get Ready To 3D Print With A Kinect Sensor And A Web Browser, here your grandfather

Typically scanning and 3D printing an object is a complex process but this could be made simpler if 3D printing company Volumental is successful in crowdfunding the development of a web app which would allow users to scan and print 3D objects using nothing more than a Kinect sensor and a web browser.

Volumental's 3D Scan-to-Print web app will finally make this fantasy a reality as they are creating the world's first browser-based 3D printable model creator.

Though the company already has a web service that allows people to upload scanned 3D models, Volumental says that it needs to refine an app which is better able to differentiate a thing (toys, pets, family members are among the suggestions) from its surroundings in order to be able to print the object in isolation. Though this is a tricky problem to solve, the company claims it knows how to do it, and simply needs to hire a developer to get it done.

This amazing technology is the world's first that allows users to create usable, shareable 3D models of their living room sofa, grandfather, or a kitchen appliance all without leaving your browser window. This new app will be perfect for those objects that you’ve always wanted to 3D print but were inaccessible due to either 3D modeling difficulties or the restrictions of desktop 3D scanners.

If funded, the app raises the exciting prospect of being able to scan more or less anything. Connect your Kinect sensor to a laptop tethered to a smartphone and you theoretically have yourself a portable 3D scanner with which to snap a quick model of anything you fancy a 3D print of, which would arrive soon after on your doorstep. The team claims the process will be as easy as streaming a movie using Netflix.

Volumental claims that the web app will be able to 3D print more or less anything

Volumental claims that the web app will be able to 3D print more or less anything, even your pet

Volumental is aiming to develop the app inside of three months. Though the delivery date for pledges is January 2014, the company says this represents a "worse case scenario."

Volumental is aiming to develop the app inside of three months

The available pledges get interesting at the US$50 mark, which will net you a 3D print of any model you scan and upload. Other pledges make 3D models available to downloading for people with access to 3D printers.

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Get Ready To 3D Print With A Kinect Sensor And A Web Browser