OCTOBER 14,1996 - THE BUSINESS JOURNAL
by Lisa Cownie

High-tech Image Scanning Technology Spawns Start-up in Marin

San Anselmo - When watching movies like Jurassic Park, did you ever wonder and how they get those dinosaurs and scientists to run side by side? The answer is not far away: it fact, it can be found in a small company called Scansite in San Anselmo. Scansite, which opened a month ago, has the technology to scan people, dinosaur figures, and other objects into a computer. The computer file is then sent to the client to have it animated to bring foward a 3-D picture that is completely lifelike.

We actually have two scanners... explains co-owner David Bassett. One is a portrait scanner to scan people, and the other is a model scanner for objects. They scan for shape and color, so we get a 3-D image that looks like the real object. The technology comes from Cyberware in Monterey, which holds all the patents for this type of technology. We are one of only three companies in the nation that make this type of technology available to the public.

Scanning with light

Besides Hollywood movies, this scanning technology is used in manufacturing for exact duplication of protypes, by physicians for prostheses fittings and reconstructive and cosmetic surgery, and by the U.S. military and NASA to create the best fitting helmets for combat or suits for space travel. The uses, says Mr. Bassett, are endless.

"A university wants us to scan 10,000 Indian skeletons they have. We will scan skulls and bones, so they can develop a true replicate for their database... "he says.

Partner Lisa Federici says the process is unique, because its done completely with light.

It is very nonintrusive. When people think of scanning, they typically think of MRIs or CAT scans. But this does not give off harmful rays... she explains. A beam of light hits an object or person and reflects back into the box, and the image is instantly put into the computer. It literally takes only 17 seconds to scan a person. Its also that fast with objects, although we often scan them more than once for different angles...

Jumping in

The idea for making the technology available to the public came about when Mr. Bassett, an architect, became interested in 3-D modeling and had some objects he wanted scanned. When he couldn't find a place to do it, he saw an opportunity to create a niche business.

The technology available actually started in 1984 but was nothing compared to what we have now," he says. "The first scanners were black and white and had limited resolution. It was very limited as to how tight it could scan. Now, we can go as small as 1/4 of a millimeter, about the thickness of a piece of paper...

With the improvements in technology, Mr. Bassett's eye to the market, and Ms. Federici's background in business, the duo decided to jump in.

We started talking to Cyberware two years ago... says Ms. Federici. They wanted to stop doing scanning and just concentrate on improving the technology. So they handed that part of the business to us. We have three employees, and we were all trained by Cyberware to handle the scanners. We'll hopefully double our staff in the next few months...

Meanwhile, the partners have leased 1,600sf at 330 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. Haden Ongaro of Orion Partners and Jay Murphy of Grubb & Ellis handled the two-year lease transaction.

The perfect location

Even though one full-body scanner costs $410,000 with software but not the attendant computer, the partners believe they can make a go of it.

With the multimedia and software industries growing here, we believe the bay area is the best place for us to be located... says Mr. Bassett. We market ourselves through the Internet. The Internet is big for this type of business, because it targets the type of people who would normally use our service. In fact, we're getting our Web site rebuilt, and we are also going to start advertising in computer trade magazines. Cyberware also tells people about us on its Web site...

The bay area is full of all kinds of people who would want this service. It's the perfect location for us... says Mr. Bassett

For more information, call (415)883-7226.