These models are free of holes, making them suitable for surface fitting, rapid prototyping, and rendering. There are a number of limitations that prevent us from generating models from an arbitrary object. Some of these limitations arise from the algorithm while others arise from the limitations of the scanning technology. Among the algorithmic limitations, our method has difficulty bridging sharp corners if no scan spans both surfaces meeting at the corner. This is less of a problem when applying our hole-filling algorithm, but we are also exploring methods that will work without hole filling.
Thin surfaces are also problematic.
As described in section 3, the influences of observed surfaces extend behind their estimated positions for each range image and can interfere with distance functions originating from scans of the opposite side of a thin surface. In this respect, the apexes of sharp corners also behave like thin surfaces. While we have limited this influence as much as possible, it still places a lower limit on the thickness of surface that we can reliably reconstruct without causing artifacts such as thickening of surfaces or rounding of sharp corners. We are currently working to lift this restriction by considering the estimated normals of surfaces. Other limitations arise from the scanning technologies themselves.