DM Scanner 3D — Support

Support for DM Scanner 3D, the iPhone and iPad app for making 3D models you can open in Blender. If you don’t find your answer here, email josh@dependentmedia.com and a human will reply.

What you need

• Scan a scene needs a LiDAR scanner: iPhone Pro models from iPhone 12 Pro onward, or an iPad Pro with LiDAR.
• Scan a face needs a TrueDepth camera, which is any iPhone or iPad with Face ID.
• Capture an object needs a recent device that supports Apple’s Object Capture. The app tells you on the home screen if yours does not.

Quick start — scan a room

1. Open the app and tap Scan a scene. Allow camera access.
2. Frame the area, then press the big red Start button. Nothing is captured before you press it.
3. Move slowly. The mesh appears over the camera view as you go, and the palette figure shows how much of it has colour.
4. Tap Finish & export, choose your formats, and the scan appears at the top of the home screen.

Quick start — scan a face

1. Tap Scan a face and press Start. This uses the front camera, so you can see yourself.
2. Hold the phone at arm’s length in soft, even light. A cyan mesh locks onto the face.
3. Turn your head slowly left and right until each ear has faced the camera, then look up and down. The texture figure climbs as more of the face is seen straight-on.
4. Tap Finish & save.

Opening a scan in Blender

Open a scan and tap Share all files to AirDrop it to your Mac, or find it in the Files app under On My iPhone → DM Scanner. In Blender use File → Import and pick the OBJ, PLY or USD file (object captures are USDZ, which Blender opens as USD). Scans are already Z-up and in metres, so they arrive the right way round at real size.

• Share the whole set, not just the .obj. It needs its .mtl file beside it, and a face scan needs its texture .png too.
• To see a room scan’s colour in Blender, add a Color Attribute node to the material.

Frequently asked

Scanning outdoors doesn’t reach very far

The LiDAR scanner reaches about five metres indoors, and bright sunlight shortens that a lot, because it works with infrared light. Scan large places in several shorter passes, in shade or on an overcast day where you can.

My scan came out grey

Make sure Colour is switched on while scanning, and move slowly enough for the colour figure to climb. Very dark rooms capture little colour.

Where are my scans kept?

Only on your device. There is no account and nothing is uploaded. Deleting the app deletes your scans, so share the ones you want to keep first. See the privacy policy.

Contact

Email josh@dependentmedia.com or call (775) 238-3425.