Our Process
What Happens During a Scan: From Physical Space to Actionable Digital Data
When you engage Obsidian 3D for a project, our process is designed for efficiency, accuracy, and minimal disruption. Our approach leverages the advanced capabilities of the Leica RTC360 laser scanner to transform your physical environment into a precise digital twin. Whether it's a quick capture or ongoing monitoring, here's what you can expect:
-
Prior to executing the scanning, our experienced technician will conduct a brief site assessment and review any specific safety protocols and project requirements. We prioritize safety and efficient workflow, ensuring the area to be scanned is clear of unnecessary obstructions and personnel movement is minimized for optimal data capture. While our equipment can capture intricate details, clearing debris or unwanted materials beforehand helps streamline post-processing, reduces post-processing costs, and ensures the focus is on your critical assets.
-
The Leica RTC360 scanner is set up on a tripod at various strategic locations throughout the area of interest called “setups.” Our technicians determine the optimal positions to ensure comprehensive coverage and capture all necessary details, including complex geometries and hard-to-reach areas. The scanner operates quickly, capturing up to 2 million points per second and performing automated in-field registration, which aligns individual scans together in real-time. The RTC360 operates on a "time of flight" principle: it emits a laser beam and precisely measures the time it takes for that beam to travel to a surface and return to the scanner. This precise time measurement is then used to calculate the exact distance to each point, enabling the creation of a highly accurate 3D representation. This real-time visualization on our Leica Field360 software allows us to verify data completeness before leaving the site, minimizing the need for return visits.
-
While scans are underway, our technician can use Leica Field360 on a tablet to visually inspect the captured data in real-time. This allows for immediate identification of any potential data gaps or areas requiring additional detail, ensuring all critical information is acquired before we conclude our on-site work.
-
After the on-site capture is complete, the raw scan data is brought back to our office for comprehensive post-processing using advanced software like Leica Register360 and Leica Cyclone 3DR. This stage involves registering all individual scans into a single, cohesive point cloud, cleaning the data, and then extracting the specific deliverables you require. The result is a highly accurate, usable digital asset ready for your applications.
-
Share accurate 3D models with contractors, electricians, and other trades, ensuring everyone works from the same precise as-built data, minimizing on-site conflicts. Providing installers with a precise 3D model of existing conditions for complex lighting or cabinetry installations can reduce on-site installation time by 10-15% due to fewer adjustments and clearer understanding, saving valuable labor hours and preventing schedule overruns.
Single-Visit Projects: Capturing a Snapshot in Time
Single-visit projects are ideal for capturing a complete and highly accurate digital representation of a specific object, space, or site at one point in time. This is perfect for as-built documentation, detailed existing conditions surveys, forensic scene mapping, or digitizing a prototype.
Multi-Visit Projects: Tracking Change, Progress, and Milestones
Multi-visit projects offer a dynamic approach to reality capture, providing immense value for ongoing construction, long-term monitoring, or phased developments. By conducting a series of scans over time, we create a living digital twin that tracks progress, identifies deviations, and offers a powerful tool for quality control and documentation.
-
The project begins with a comprehensive initial scan to capture the "as-is" condition of the site or object. This serves as the critical baseline against which all subsequent changes will be measured.
-
Based on your project's needs—whether it's daily, weekly, monthly, or at key project milestones (e.g., after foundation pours, framing completion, MEP rough-in)—we return to the site to capture the latest conditions. Each new scan is meticulously aligned with the baseline and previous scans, creating a continuous, accurate record of evolution. As with single-visit projects, these subsequent scans can also be registered to your provided local control or to our own 0, 0, 0, ensuring consistent and precise comparative analysis over time.
-
These sequential datasets allow for powerful comparative analysis. We can identify deviations from design plans (clash detection on-site), track construction progress for payment verification, monitor structural element alignment and verticality, or observe environmental changes like glacier movement or structural shifts in caves. This objective, measurable data is invaluable for minimizing rework and accelerating decision-making.
-
For projects with extended lifecycles or assets requiring ongoing management (e.g., historical sites or large infrastructure), multi-visit scanning creates an invaluable digital archive, documenting every stage of transformation or degradation with unparalleled precision.
-
Share accurate 3D models with contractors, electricians, and other trades, ensuring everyone works from the same precise as-built data, minimizing on-site conflicts. Providing installers with a precise 3D model of existing conditions for complex lighting or cabinetry installations can reduce on-site installation time by 10-15% due to fewer adjustments and clearer understanding, saving valuable labor hours and preventing schedule overruns.