Auto-Align Object Scan

The Auto-Align Object project type in Lightform Creator utilizes a photo of a 2D object (e.g., a painting, tapestry, mural, etc.) to automatically align projected content on that object. This makes creating new projects fast and easy. 

Available with the LFC Kit and LF2/2+. 

Here is a quick demo of the Auto-Align Object Scan workflow:

Use this feature to: 

• Create a project using the reference image before you get on-site
• Align content when you get on-site in just a few clicks
• Work from a high quality image of your object (instead of a scan)
• Deploy the same project to any number of installations/devices
• Re-align your content quickly if anything moves (projector or object)

Auto-Align Object Project Workflow

1. You must have a 2D image of your object. This can be a photo of the object taken with a camera, or a rendering of the design file for the object (if you printed it yourself, for example).
2. If you are taking a photo with your smartphone or a dedicated camera:
   • Face the object directly, get as close as possible, and then take the photo. 
     • [Optional] Crop the image in an image editing application so the image only contains the object of interest.
     • [Optional] Use an image editing application such as Photoshop or a free photo editing tool to further crop or mask the image with a black background to contain only pixels you want to detect for auto-alignment (see the third graffiti example below).
       • Here is an example of how to use perspective crop to edit out the background in your image using freephototool.com:  
   • Make sure the image is high quality and not blurry. Images of 1920x1080 resolution are sufficient.
     • Note: Images are downsampled to 1920x1080 if necessary, so there's no need for 4K resolution.
   • Most common image formats are compatible, including JPEG and PNG.
     • HEIC and WEBP are not supported - Please make sure your camera or photo app is configured to save photos in a supported image format.

   • Examples:

     Bad		Good		Great!

     
     

     Bad		Good		Great!

     
     

     Bad		Good		Great!

3. Transfer the image to the computer that is running Lightform Creator. 
4. In Lightform Creator, click on the "File" menu, and select "New Project". The "New Project" dialog will appear. Then using the drop down, select the "Auto-Align Object" project type.
   • If you do not see the "Project Type" setting, make sure Labs features are enabled by going to the "Help" menu, and selecting "Enable Labs".
5. In the "Object Image File" field, choose the image you transferred to your computer.
6. Make sure "Perform New Scan to Initialize Project" is checked. It is checked by default.
7. Click "Create".
8. The scan dialog will appear. Use the live camera display to orient your Lightform device's camera and projector so that the object is visible. You should then draw a box around the object of interest before scanning for the best results. The box you draw should be accurate but does not need to be perfect, as in the example below.
9. Click "Scan" to perform the scanning and auto-alignment process. 
10. When finished, you will land on the Control Page's "Manual Alignment" tab where you can manually tweak the alignment, if necessary.
11. Navigate back to the Design Page and create content as you usually would. Any time you publish, the content will now be aligned to your object.
    • You can re-scan or revisit the Manual Alignment tab to correct the alignment at any time.
12. If installing this experience on multiple Lightform devices, you can use the "Publish to Local Folder" and "Publish from Local Folder" features to reduce publishing time:
    1. On the Design page, click the dropdown button next to the Publish button, and select "Publish to Local Folder". The project will be published to a zip file in the selected folder. This only needs to be done once.
        
    2. On the Design page, select "Publish from Local Folder" and "Change Device" multiple times, each time publishing to a different device with the same published project. This will save time since the project only needs to be rendered the first time.
       • Alternatively, you can use the "Publish From Local Folder" item in the "File" menu. 
         
         This feature behaves differently depending on whether the Design page or Control page is active.
         • If the Design page is active: The active project's device on the Design page is published to. If there is no active project, or there is no device for the project, an error message will be displayed.
         • If the Control page is current: The active device on the Control page is published to. If there is no active device, an error message will be displayed.