Warning

You are reading the documentation for an older Pickit release (3.0). Documentation for the latest release (3.4) can be found here.

Does additional lighting help me get better 3D data?

The short answer is no. As explained in the article How does the Pickit 3D camera work?, our cameras are based on the structured light principle. For this to work, the structured light pattern needs to be the most present light source in the scene. If additional light is added to the scene, this can interfere with the known pattern. This interference can lead to worse 3D data.

The M and L cameras work with structured infrared light. So only other infrared light sources interfere with these cameras, the most common one being direct sunlight.

The M-HD and L-HD cameras works with structured visible light. To be less dependent on changing lighting conditions, these cameras use a strong projector. Because of this, typical changing lighting conditions in an office or factory don’t have much influence on the camera. Still, direct sunlight and bright spotlights can cause interference.

Note

If the Exclude 3D information based on color is used for detections, stable light conditions are necessary.