Physical model (left) with 3D replica.
Graphics company, Chaos Group, has announced a new scanning technology that can produce an exact digital replica of a physical 3D material with sub-mm precision.
Using this new patented technology, designers and manufacturing firms can instantly take advantage through VRscans, Chaos Group’s new full-service material scanning business, to produce accurate visual representations of material samples.
Peter Mitev, CEO at Chaos Group, commented: “We’ve dedicated the last 19 years to advancing rendering technology, so designers can trust what they see on their screen. Now they can match the material sample in their hand with the one in their 3D model.”
In the past, when using digital graphics to prototype projects, approximations have been made and forced artists to spend countless hours getting 90% of the way there. VRscans materials are superior to standard BRDF approximations and implements BTF (bidirectional texture functions) to completely capture a material's true surface appearance, texture data, and unique response to light. With this method, companies can now send in their material samples, trusting that the results will be the most accurate representation of a digital material. Once processed, the materials are returned with a ‘.vrscan’ file that arrives ready to render in V-Ray - Chaos Group’s photorealistic lighting and rendering software.
VRscans combines precise optical hardware with proprietary software; the result of several years of research and prototyping. VRscans captures each material’s full appearance, including surface texture, reflectivity, dimensionality, and its unique response to light. This complex data is read by the new VRscans plugin, creating a physically accurate material that can be rendered from any angle and in any lighting condition.
Dinko Dimitrov, VRscans Product Manager, added: "Several pilot projects are already underway with top automotive, aerospace, and furniture companies. Digital prototypes are the best way to design quickly. Now designers can do it with confidence.”
