What is the difference between the different Styku scanner models?

The S100 and S100X use different cameras to capture the body. Customers scanned in more than one scanner can see different results. Learn why here.

Styku has created several different 3D body scanners over the years. Some of them are single camera setups, and some use multiple cameras.  As the camera technology evolves, Styku upgrades and improves the scanner to use the latest technology in 3D depth sensing.

The current model is the S100X, which uses one Intel Realsense camera to capture the human body as it rotates on the turntable. The S100X camera is capable of capturing the full body with a single camera, and the footprint is significantly smaller than the previous model, the S100.

How does it work?

The S100 uses a Microsoft Kinect v2 camera, which captures the body using a method known as "time-of-flight".  In a time-of-flight camera, light is emitted from the camera, and the distance between the camera and the object being scanned is calculated by determining the amount of time it takes for the light to hit the object and return to the camera.

The S100X uses an Intel Realsense camera, which employs a technology known as "stereo depth" to capture the person on the turntable. There are two sensors in the camera that are a fixed distance apart, much like your eyes are. By viewing the object from two different points of view, the camera is able to triangulate distances and shapes of the object being scanned.

Why does this matter?

All cameras capture what they "see", even the camera in your phone. However, all camera technologies have different reactions to the environment, and especially light. The way the light in an environment interacts with the camera, and the object being scanned, changes what is seen.

For example, when you take a picture of someone with your phone's camera, how the picture comes out depends on the light it's taken in. Put the sun behind the person, and the person will appear dark. Put the sun behind you, and the person will be lit up brightly. If there's too much light on the person, the camera may darken the image to compensate. Take a picture of someone standing next to a mirror, and you may see two or more images of the person in the photograph.

The same is true for the 3D depth cameras that Styku uses in 3D body scanners. If there is a lot of light in the environment, especially if the light is behind the person on the turntable, or shining brightly on them from above, the camera will compensate by darkening the image, which may result in parts of the body not being visible. This can cause scans to fail. 

Reflections also have a big impact on what the camera "sees", especially with the S100. Because the S100 uses time-of-flight technology, it is sensitive to reflections, and parts of the body that are close to reflective objects like walls and floors (such as the lower legs, and the lower arms) may be captured differently compared to the camera in the S100X, or in a different environment.

Can I use both 3D body scanner models at the same time?

When customers are scanned with one scanner, and then scanned with a different scanner model, there will often be differences, especially in the limbs. Styku requires that customers are scanned with the same scanner model, in the same environment, for before-and-after reports and progress tracking. If you do decide to change scanner models, you will need to create a new Styku account, and the scans done on the earlier model shouldn't be compared with the new model, for accurate results.