The Shining 3D’s EinScan PRO challenges the market for professional handheld 3D Scanners with expandable features and lower price. 

Shining 3D and their EinScan Pro is a an interesting combination that really offers an challenge to Creaform and Artec 3D. Lets go through how it works and what it offers. 

EinScan Pro is a handheld multi-mode 3D scanner using “White Light” technology to scan objects and people. It features multiple scanning modes with different tracking modes to ensure maximum quality in all scenarios.

Update: Shining 3D have released the EinScan Pro+, a slightly more expensive version with faster tracking and a wider FOV for easier handling. Most of the features I’ll talk about are the same, just slightly better on the EinScan Pro+.

Different configurations with addons.

EinScan Pro offers several expansions via the “expansion port”. A great features here is auto-scanning in extreme resolution with a motorized turntable, added in what’s called a “Industrial pack”. This allows for scanning small objects with mesh-resolution of 0.16mm.

In standard mode, the EinScan Pro scan geometry only, but with the “Color Pack” you get an extra camera that also records RGB-color (textures) on your 3D-models.

The EinScan Pro+ (a newer version of the Pro) also have a EinScan HD Prime Pack, that enables faster scanning with better tracking when not using markers.

Different scanning modes

The EinScan Pro is really a multi-purpose scanner for everything from smaller objects to parts of cars and motorcycles due to it’s different scanning modes. These modes allows you to adapt the scanning to each scenario.

When scanning people or body-parts, you don’t want to use markers since they might move/fall of. People are usually hard to keep still which is why it’s important to scan fast and efficiently. All of this can be achieved in the Rapid Handheld scanning mode.

If you’re scanning an engine block on the other hand, you want maximum precision and resolution. With the Handheld HD scan you help the scanner to track with markers and get the best mesh-resolution, something that wouldn’t work on a person.

If you’re scanning smaller objects it’s better to avoid moving the scanner, so you can track even better. With the Automatic scan mode with the optional Industrial Kit, you can do just that.

Here you can see a 1:1 mannequin scanned in Handheld Rapid and uploaded to Sketchfabb. You can register and download the model to inspect the STL (mesh). You’ll see more examples further down.

Specifications in different scanning modes.

Before starting a scanning project in EinScan Pro software you can calibrate and setup your scanner for the scenario you’re using it in. The calibration is fairly quick and should be done every time you set up the scanner somewhere. If you’re just using in your shop there’s no need to calibrate each time.

Handheld HD scan (where you use markers for precision)

• 0.1mm Accuracy

• 15 fps Scan Speed

• 0.2-2mm resolution depending on volume.

• No textures

Handheld Rapid Scan (Feature-aligned without markers)

• 0.3mm Accuracy

• 10 fps Scan Speed

• 0.5-2mm resolution depending on volume.

• Textures (with texture addon)

Automatic Scan (motorized turntable and tripod)

• Part of Industrial Pack – allows automatic scan

• 0.05 mm Accuracy

• 0.16mm resolution

• Max 15cm (in diameter) size of objects

Free Scan – (static scanning with Industrial pack)

• Uses alignment points, slower scanning, higher details

• 0.05 mm Accuracy (single scan)

• 0.16mm resolution

• Around 1m recommended scan size (max is 4m, but not realistic)

The 3D scanning Technology

The EinScan Pro uses whats called White light 3D scanning. It has LED-projector that produces a rasterized pattern on the object, which is then tracked by two cameras. The Handheld HD mode actually uses sharp lines as they tend to track sharp details better, but slower.

The White Light 3D scanning technique is fast but sensitive to very white or dark objects since it’s dependent on the contrast it can project.

Due to it’s projection of a pattern, it’s of course very hard to scan objects that are reflective, transparent or extremely furry. On those surfaces you won’t get a sharp enough contrast to create a 3D-image from.

Scanning in direct sunlight is also hard since the cameras might not be able to expose accurately to see the projected pattern.

Overcoming difficult scanning scenarios.

When scanning reflective or transparent objects with the EinScan Pro you can use a “contrast-spray” that creates a thin matte white surface on your object. It’s almost like a fine dust. I recommend using Cyclododecane spray, but it seems to be out of stock almost every where. The CAD CAM scan sprays are great options as well!

If you have body panels on a car, sometimes just keeping them dusty/dirty is enough to get a good scan if you don’t want to spray a customers car.

When it comes to hair/fur it’s hard to overcome and get good results from. If you need a persons head/shape you can use a swim-hat or similar to compress the hair and get a good representation of the head’s shape. The hair can be re-modeled in 3D quite easily later on.

Scanning software and it’s drawbacks

EinScan Pro use EinScan Software to create Mesh-files from your scans. You always get mesh (triangulated 3D) from a 3D scan. If you want to create CAD-files like STEP/IGES some remodeling or conversion is required.

3D Consulting Nordic is my professional CAD-service company that specialize n these conversions. Feel free to send a request and we can help you convert any 3D-scan to STEP/IGES and similar.

Some of the simple things can be converted into Solids quite easily for reverse engineering in this video:

The Einscan Software is quite limited and although it’s improved quite often, it still lacks some of the exceptional project-management that Artec 3D and Creaform offers. It’s the combination of scans that you might need to do when rotating objects, scanning large parts or just handling high/low resolution parts of the same project that is lacking.

With that said everything that involved parts that are up to the size of a person is very easy to manage inside the Einscan Software.

In my review I dive deeper into the different parts of the software, including calibration and setting up for a scan. Everything is quick and easy, but is a necessary step for a good scan.

3D Scanning Examples

Here you can see a few more samples from the EinScan PRO. 

Here’s one of my quick scans showing the higher details on a EinScan Pro Handheld HD scan. We didn’t want to scan the whole RC-Car ferrari enzo body (3D Printed), just a few sides of it as seen in the video. What’s interesting is the details, you can even see 3D Printed lines!

Here’s another Handheld Rapid scan made of a boxing glove!

Should you buy the EinScan Pro 3D Scanner?

I’ve used quite a few 3D Scanners over the years and I really like the modular approach Shining 3D have taking on the EinScan Pro.  The ability to adapt it for your needs is unique, and you get all this on relatively low budget compared to it’s competition.

With that said you’re getting less development in the software and it’s no secret that you might need to find other software solutions to really get the full benefit of it’s great scanning capabilities. This is specially true when it comes to cleaning up the mesh after a scan.

The data is solid. You get accuracy and details when needed and it’s absolutely good enough to do serious reverse engineering, scan clay models and get reference data for a ton of applications.

I’d say that the EinScan Pro is a great purchase, specially with the Industrial Pack. This combo allows for the best possible coverage of scanning large parts down to smaller items on the turntable.

For Color and texture-scanning, the EinScan Pro is an great option, but has to catch up on Artec 3D’s excellent software and processing.

Pricing and availability

The EinScan Pro is best bought with local training from a supplier, but prices are usually better directly here.

If you’re mostly looking for scanning smaller parts, the EinScan-SE or EinScan-SP can be a great options. they are similar to the “Industrial Pack” allowing automatized turntable scanning in high resolution.