My 3rd Generation Scanner Build Thread

[IcantRead]

Life in the workshop was a bit messy, but was not long or bad.

life_in_the_workshop_PRO2203.jpg

I like the little dumpster(4th page 3rd pic). Did you make that with the laser cutter?

[daniel_reetz]

I like the little dumpster(4th page 3rd pic). Did you make that with the laser cutter?

Assuming you mean the little grey guy here:



Yes! Actually, that was one of my first laser-projects. One of these days I am going to refine it a bit and sell them as snap-together kits.

BUT FIRST. I have to get the laser artwork to dbmoura, so we can get a GPL version of the V3 scanner out there...

[daniel_reetz]

I made this one for my friend Michelle, who loves woodgrain stuff.

dumpster.jpg (105.93 KiB) Viewed 16391 times

[IcantRead]

Yeah! Thats Sweet! You could use it as a desk top trash can.

[Etienne66]

BUT FIRST. I have to get the laser artwork to dbmoura, so we can get a GPL version of the V3 scanner out there...

I'm very interested in this. Even more if you were to sell some sort of kit that contained everything but the glass and cameras. I don't need the portability so much as I would like to be able to fold it up and put it away when I am not using it.

Etienne66

[daniel_reetz]

I'm just going to zip up the files as they are and send them to dbmoura, as it's going to be weeks before I get the time to really clean them up. I have other DIY Book Scanner commitments (like writing up posts about what our members are doing) that are more pressing.

The scanner I made has a few problems. One, it has a lot of parts. It takes a lot of time on the laser, and time on the laser is not free. Two, I made it 1 inch too long in one dimension, so it doesn't fit on little Canadair jets. This may not be a big deal to you, but it is to me because that's the kind of jet that flies out of most smaller cities. I suppose it could also be hardened so it could reasonably be checked, but I consider that a last resort.

Furthermore, construction of this scanner, even with all the pieces right in front of you, is not as easy as it could be. Before this could reasonably be offered as a kit for a lot of people, it would need to be simplified and some aspects of it re-thought. I hope that dbmoura and I can get a lot of that work done. I know we have a Solidworks modeler or two in the forum. I might need to pick up a 3D package like that to really make things fly. Many mistakes in this version were due to the fact that I have used a 2D drawing program to make the art -- I did all the 3D modeling in my head.

For the moment, designs like Nalfonso's and sdati's look promising for portable work. Sdati's platenless design would certainly be light and robust. Spamsickle, Ann, and many others have developed collapsible elements. You1 had some neat ideas for collapsible columns and the like.

Someday, I think a DIY Book Scanner kit could happen, but I think it would take two forms, and both must begin as plans. At this point it is my highest priority to create new plans based on all the things we've learned here. Making new plans and solidifying the knowledge distributed around this forum is, in my opinion the most important thing we can do.

One would be a "Standard Scanner" which would take the smartest/cheapest/easiest parts of all the many designs here. It would be made in such a way that it could be knocked apart and stored in a closet or box. Most of us don't have the room to keep a huge piece of scanning furniture in the open. It should be possible to buy almost every single part in a single trip to a large hardware store. The plans themselves would have printable drilling and cutting templates. In my mind, making plans for this kind of scanner is a very high priority, because we have learned so much from everyone building scanners. It is time to update those original plans to give newcomers the benefit of all the work done here.

Two would be the all-tech solution. Basically, an improved and simplified version of this "3rd gen" scanner. One of the big reasons for me to make this 3rd gen thing was just to see what was possible, and to push the limits of the technology with LED lighting, collapsibility, future fabbing like lasers, etc. I don't think it's the final word -- it's really more a tech demo. This second kit would require access to a laser, services like Ponoko, or for someone to make and sell kits. While I am in graduate school it is totally impossible for me to do this. I know nobody is pressuring me, but remember that I started all this to *keep* myself in graduate school under adverse conditions. Those conditions haven't exactly gone away, and I already spend about 10x the time that I "should" on DIY book scanning stuff -- because I love it. All my disposable income and time went into the portable scanner, and that's just not possible for me at the moment.

I hope nobody reads that as a complaint, because it's not. If it isn't obvious, I absolutely LOVE building things and doing this and I wake up every day at like 6am smiling -- the first thing I do is crack open my laptop, go to this forum and see what everyone has come up with. I don't think there's a thread I haven't read. Starting each day watching everyone push the envelope -- personally, mathematically, physically, culturally, archivally -- multiplied by so many awesome people helping each other so freely -- well, let me just say this community is just amazing and I'm kind of blown away by what happens here.

The response of the public and the media shows I'm not the only one. In less than a year, through the generosity and labor of our community, and the gifts of people like Tulon (and everyone else involved), we have really made Do-It-Yourself book scanning not just a viable option but something that's having an effect on many.

So I'm committed, and it's obvious that kits would be helpful to many. While they're impossible for me at the moment, it's my hope that either more people will help share the load (why don't other people make buttons, for instance?) or that we can collectively make a kit -- each selling just a few critical parts to make up the semblance of a whole. Or that we can come up with a design so simple, elegant, and foolproof that kits are just kinda pointless.

[dbmoura]

Daniel and me (Dário) started this collaboration project of preparing the v3 Scanner to be published. As we are building up all the digital material, we would like to share how it's going. It has been a lot of fun with great care, not leaving the litter unseen. Yes, the work includes what we left behind, not only because we throw it away, but it tells a lot about the work, trials an much more. So it has been archaeology so far, let the images speak for themselves.

[daniel_reetz]

Almost a week after I said it would be online (entirely my fault; Dario's had the work done): Here are the preliminary bits of artwork for the V3 scanner. You should not use this artwork to build your own scanner. You should not use this artwork commercially. This is a pre-release preview so that we can sort out the problems with releasing hardware designs under the GPL. In the next few weeks, Dario and I will be perfecting this thing and perfecting the release.

The Parts List (neatly shows the placement of each part)
http://www.diybookscanner.org/Dan_and_D ... rtList.pdf

The Manual (Describes each section/view of the scanner)
http://www.diybookscanner.org/Dan_and_D ... ual_V3.pdf

The Sketchup Artwork:
http://www.diybookscanner.org/Dan_and_D ... ner_v3.zip

The Electronics Package:
http://www.diybookscanner.org/Dan_and_D ... ronics.pdf

[daniel_reetz]

See the News Post Here.

[daniel_reetz]

WOW, I just saw the first copy of this in the wild! I hope GreyLikeTheColour will join us!