Apparatus for acquiring a two-dimensional image of the external surface of a three-dimensional object selected from capsules of the type used in pharmaceutical or healthcare applications comprising: - displacing means for supporting and displacing the object along a path; - a single camera for capturing images of portions of the object surface; - a lower array of LED; - rotating means for rotating the object about one of its axes along a section of said path, so as to expose successive portions of the object surface to said camera, whereby the camera is able to capture images corresponding to successive exposed portions of the object surface; and - the camera is configured to sequentially capture the images as respective single frames and wherein it further comprises: - electronic processing means adapted, for each successive single frame, to • read out a sub-frame from the single frame, said sub-frame corresponding to a respective individual portion of the exposed portion of the object surface, whereby said successive sub-frames correspond to successive and adjacent individual portions of the object surface with a pre-defined mutual overlap, • store said sub-frames; and • assemble the successive sub-frames into an assembled frame corresponding to a two-dimensional image of an unpeeled surface area of the object, wherein the displacing means comprise at least one carrier provided with a housing configured to receive the object and the rotating means comprise a friction member arranged to contact locally the external surface of the object when said object is placed in the housing of the carrier, the displacing means further comprising a driving member adapted to move the carrier relative to the friction member, wherein said lower array of LED is arranged in the longitudinal direction X underneath the conveyor to illuminate a bottom region of the external surface of the object, wherein the carrier is provided with an optical transmissive or diffuse window communicating with the housing, in the form of a through-hole, and wherein the assembled frame is defined by a number of sub-frames which is greater than 10. - displacing means for supporting and displacing the object along a path; - a single camera for capturing images of portions of the object surface; - a lower array of LED; - rotating means for rotating the object about one of its axes along a section of said path, so as to expose successive portions of the object surface to said camera, whereby the camera is able to capture images corresponding to successive exposed portions of the object surface; and - the camera is configured to sequentially capture the images as respective single frames and wherein it further comprises: - electronic processing means adapted, for each successive single frame, to • read out a sub-frame from the single frame, said sub-frame corresponding to a respective individual portion of the exposed portion of the object surface, whereby said successive sub-frames correspond to successive and adjacent individual portions of the object surface with a pre-defined mutual overlap, • store said sub-frames; and • assemble the successive sub-frames into an assembled frame corresponding to a two-dimensional image of an unpeeled surface area of the object, • read out a sub-frame from the single frame, said sub-frame corresponding to a respective individual portion of the exposed portion of the object surface, whereby said successive sub-frames correspond to successive and adjacent individual portions of the object surface with a pre-defined mutual overlap, • store said sub-frames; and • assemble the successive sub-frames into an assembled frame corresponding to a two-dimensional image of an unpeeled surface area of the object,