How to Use Scaniverse

Making great scans

Two minutes of advice from an expert on the team:

Top ten scanning tips

Here's some advice to help you produce great scans for high-quality splats:

    1. Before going out to scan, plan ahead by ensuring your device’s battery is charged and the weather conditions are safe.

    2. Great splats take 1-3 minutes to scan. Any longer than that and the overall quality will diminish.

    3. Walk at a slow, natural pace. Move your body and phone to capture objects and surfaces at various angles: high and low, near and far, face-on and at angles.

    4. Adjust how you scan based on what you are scanning:

      • If it's an object like a statue that you can walk all the way around, walk in a spiral from near to far, or draw flower petal patterns by making loops as you walk closer and further.

      • For a street scene or scanning something large, focus on any one object, or simply imagine that you're scanning an invisible object in the middle. This will help you capture the entire scene. Do not pivot around a point like you're taking a panoramic photo.

    5. If you will be uploading your splat to the map, avoid capturing people. Use the opportunity of someone passing by to lift your camera up, getting a higher angle as you avoid their face.

    6. The scene should be well lit. If you have to scan in a darker setting, it’s even more important to move slowly and smoothly.

    7. Because splats capture view-dependent effects, such as reflections, you'll get the best results by capturing from multiple angles.

    8. As you scan, the visualization will start by looking blurry and gradually sharpen to indicate where you have captured useful angles. Toward the end of your scan, focus on the areas that are still blurry.

    9. You can choose to process your splat immediately to see if your scan turned out well, or you can process later if you want to do another scan or use another app, because Scaniverse must be open while processing.

    10. Have fun and try new things! Gaussian splatting on the phone is a new technology and we're all learning how to do it best. Get more advice and share what you discover on the Community.

General

Some top questions about Scaniverse.

Scaniverse is available for both iOS and Android.

iOS

The following iPhones support the Scaniverse app:

  • iPhone 11 and newer
  • iPhone XR / XS / XS Max
  • iPhone SE (2nd and 3rd generation)

However, only iPhones 12 or newer can capture and post splats.

And all iPads with an A12 processor or later:

  • iPad (8th generation and later)
  • iPad Air (4th generation and later)
  • iPad Mini (5th generation and later)
  • iPad Pro 12.9" (3rd generation and later)
  • iPad Pro 11" (all generations)

Android

Scaniverse supports Android devices with the following minimum system requirements:

Note: At the moment, some older devices do not support creating Gaussian splats. However, they can use the LiDAR and photogrammetry modes of Scaniverse and can also view splats created by others.

Scaniverse is completely free to download and use as much as you like.

All of these Niantic initiatives share a common goal of inviting people around the world to help improve our digital representation of their world. In fact, many of the locations on the Scaniverse map were originally captured as scans from one of those apps, and we’re processing more all the time. What’s different about Scaniverse is that it’s built for you to instantly see and share the results of your scanning.

Sure! In fact, it’s cool to see the same place at different times of day, seasons, and even weather conditions. (Though please be safe.)

Scaniverse can do both, but it’s crucial to move your location and position, because it needs to see the same thing from different angles to build a good 3D model. See the Scanning Tips above.

Processing splats and meshes

Learn about generating 3D photos and objects right on your phone

Meshes use millions of rigidly defined and colored triangles to represent the surface of objects. Splats use millions of fuzzy balls floating in space with colors that fade at the edges to represent volume. It turns out that splats look more realistic because they do a better job of adapting features like lighting based on different viewing positions.

No, all scan data is processed locally on your device. Unless you choose to share, data will not leave your device. This also means you can do unlimited processing for free.

No, because the entire process is done on your device. You can upload and share your work when you are back on the grid.

No, you can save a scan for later processing. This is helpful if your battery is low, or if you want to do a bunch of scans in a row without waiting for processing.

Yes, provided you have the raw data saved. To do so, open your scan, then press the … icon in the upper-right corner. Select Reprocess Scan, and then Splat.

Create a splat if:

  • You want to upload your scan to the map.
  • You want a photorealistic result with high-fidelity lighting and reflections.
  • You want to capture beyond the 5-meter range of the LiDAR scanner or our photogrammetry mode.
  • You want a result that models the background and sky.

Create a mesh if:

  • You want to export the result to third-party 3D software or game engines.
  • You want a standalone 3D model without a background.
  • You need precise measurements.

Yes, we will continue to support and improve our LiDAR and photogrammetry modes. For some applications, LiDAR and/or photogrammetry can be preferable to Gaussian splatting, and we intend to support these long-term.

Sharing and exporting splats

Share your 3D photos with friends and the world

No, there are rules and guidelines (see Scaniverse Content Guidelines in addition to our Player Guidelines), the most important being:

  • Public places only, no private residences or otherwise restricted areas
  • Don’t upload splats with identifiable faces without the person’s permission, or any personally identifiable information
  • Avoid any content that is inappropriate, offensive, or harassing
  • Respect intellectual property rights

Yes, you can create splats of a birthday party or your backyard, for instance, and share a video or private link with your friends and family.

Yes, in two ways. You can export a cinematic video for easy uploading to your favorite platform. Or, when you share a splat on a map or upload to a private link, you get a URL that you can include in platforms that support links.

Yes. When you upload a splat for sharing, if you have the location set, it will appear on the map. Only iOS users will be able to see it on the map, though, until we bring the map to Android.

Browsing and using splats

You made a splat, now what?

In addition to sharing with friends and the world, you can use splats as the canvas for 3D games and other experiences using Niantic Studio. (For now, you can only build upon your own splats.)

You can see a list of the splats you've liked, but for sharing, the closest you can do for now is compile the URLs of various splats into a list.

Scaniverse supports several file formats for meshes such as OBJ, FBX, USDZ, and LAS, which can then be imported into your favorite 3D editing or modeling software. You can also share meshes on platforms like Sketchfab.

No, you can share splats with anyone by sending them the link to your uploaded splat. They can interact with it in the browser. From the browser, you can get a code snippet to embed your splat in a webpage.

Not yet. For now, the only place to see splats on a map is the iOS version of the Scaniverse app. However, you can see and interact with individual splats in a browser if you have the link.

Contact us

Didn’t find the answer you’re looking for? Send us an email at hi@scaniverse.com, and we’ll be happy to answer any questions you have.