Japanese Researchers Develop World's Fastest Book Scanner 138
An anonymous reader writes "IEEE Spectrum reports that Tokyo University researchers have developed a superfast book scanner that uses lasers and a high-speed camera to achieve a capture rate of 200 pages per minute. You just quickly flip the book pages in front of the system and it digitizes the pages, building a 3D model of each and reconstructing it as a normal flat page. The prototype is large and bulky, but if this thing could be made smaller, one day we could scan a book or magazine in seconds using a smartphone." The article mentions Google's similar dewarping system; the difference here is speed.
Did someone say lasers? (Score:3, Funny)
Does it come with a shark-mount?
Re:Did someone say lasers? (Score:4, Funny)
That's an add-on, Sir. But if you act today and bump up to the "Premium" model, it comes WITH the shark-mount. Buy our "Ultimate" model, and it even comes with the frikkin' sharks!
Prior Art. (Score:5, Funny)
Johnny 5: Alive!
Here we go... (Score:4, Funny)
1) Yes, but does it run Linux.... ... the book scans you! ....
2) Imagine a beowulf cluster of these...
3) I can't understand 200 pages/minute, what's that in LOC/furlough?
4) I can't read you insensitive clod.
5) In Soviet Russia, the book scans the book scanner...wait that's not quite right...ah, got it,
6.1) Scan books real fast
6.2) Tie into massive database that indexes every perceivable medium on the planet
6.3) Get sued by publishers.
6.4)
6.5) Profit!!
7) How fast can it build a 3d model of Natalie Portman with hot gritz?
8) The CIA will use this to scan every page of the manuscripts you've stored in your apartment and will come for your tin foil.
9) Netcraft confirms: reading is dying...
10) A book scanner is like a car that drives really fast over a highway full of book pages...
Someone needs to fix the above list for me.
Re:Did someone say lasers? (Score:5, Funny)
Forget the shark-mount. I have to turn my own pages!?
Oh well, I guess I'll just stick to buying books that are advertised as page turners.
Re:Copyright (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Prior Art. (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Faster method (Score:4, Funny)
The employees at Borders were not amused when I wheeled my band saw in. They demanded that I pay for the book I'd just sawed up and scanned. I told them "I'm certainly not paying money for that book now, look how ruined it is! Besides, I already have a copy," as I waved my thumb drive in their face.
Re:Copyright (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Did someone say lasers? (Score:4, Funny)
Does it come with a shark-mount?
Warning: Do not look at shark with remaining eye.
Re:Faster method (Score:3, Funny)
The employees at Borders were not amused when I wheeled my band saw in. They demanded that I pay for the book I'd just sawed up and scanned. I told them "I'm certainly not paying money for that book now, look how ruined it is! Besides, I already have a copy," as I waved my thumb drive in their face.
Someone with real balls would have asked for a cash refund. "Clearly my copy of the book is faulty, can I get cash refund, or just instore credit?"
(just kidding)
Re:This is Masatoshi Ishikawa (Score:4, Funny)
Re:This is Masatoshi Ishikawa (Score:2, Funny)
High-speed robot hand... from Japan.
No comment.
Re:Prior Art. (Score:3, Funny)
Need input! Input, input, input!
I'm not impressed (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Faster method (Score:4, Funny)
I just place my kindle on my scanner, hit scan, then next page. Rinse and repeat. 10 minutes later I have the book ripped. Then a little OCR work converts to text. this still takes a little time though as I'd have to proof read afterwards as well. Once I've done a few, I'll look at finding out how to re encode as a .mobi file.