If visions of 3D-printed objects are dancing in your head this holiday season, consider the Sense 3D scanner from 3D Systems. The $399 handheld scanner can capture objects in a range of sizes, making it easier to recreate them with a 3D printer.
According to a 3D Systems representative, the Sense 3D can capture anything up to a 10-by-10-by-10-foot box. And as you'll see in this video report, that includes scanning someone's head to create a 3D-printed bust.
To create a 3D bust of yourself, just use the Sense 3D scanner to capture an image of your head. You'll need someone to walk around you with the scanner.
The scanning process is pretty easy: Just stand there while someone walks around you. In my first-hand experience with the Sense 3D, the person holding the scanner had to make sure she got the top of my head and under my chin to make my bust complete. After getting captured, there's some basic editing that can be done to the scan and then it's off to print. In the above demo, we used a $1300 Cube consumer 3D printer. You can also upload your 3D scans to Cubify.com and get a printed-out version delivered to you.
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