Reconstructing Dinosaur Fossils Using the FARO Laser Scanner

Paleontologists from the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History are working towards reconstructing the anatomy of missing bones of a juvenile Apatosaurus. With approximately only 15% of the bones collected, scientists look to digitally reconstruct the rest of the bone structure using the model of the adult Apatosaurus currently on display in the Museum. Reverse engineering the large skeleton would be the best solution.

The FARO Laser Scanner Photon proved to be the ideal solution. With a measurement range of 395 FT. and a high resolution capture of 711 million pixels per scan, the FARO Photon was able to provide the researchers the required data to reverse engineer the adult skeleton into a CAD based model. FARO’s post-processing software, FARO Scene, automatically registers each scan together for a complete point cloud mesh. 

Paleontologists and researchers all agreed that laser scanning can open up new avenues to studying and rebuilding the past, specifically anything fragile in nature and delicate to handle. By applying a non-contact laser to such objects, it allows researchers the benefit of examining features without degrading the specimens.

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