If you’ve ever been interested in reconstructing objects with your 3D Printer, you’ve probably looked into 3D scanning and the other solution.  The one where a piece of software takes in multiple photos of an object and tries to construct a 3D model of it.  Well a group of researchers might be making the alternative a little bit easier.

Honestly the video looks like some crazy space-age-vaporware if you ask me.  But in the case that it isn’t, I think this could be a huge boost to the 3D Printing community.  The only alternative to this method of using a single photograph is you’re missing the other side where a 2D photograph can’t see.

I don’t think that really matters that much because the technology they are using appears to use primitive shape matching, which should already have the required info for the missing dimension.  The only real thing you would be missing with this is the texture.  Until full color 3D printing comes into it’s own, that isn’t even needed.

If they can add an object export to this software, you could size it up for real dimensions and print one out.  Spiffy!