Rugged tablet and digital modelling preserve history

Many historically significant sites and objects are prone to deterioration caused by weather, natural disasters and man-made factors. As part of the Taiwan Ministry of Culture’s e-Taiwan Project, monuments including Lugang Mazu Temple, built in 1591, are being preserved through the use of digital modelling.

The temple and artefacts such as the Phoenix Planaquin — a man-drawn carriage used to carry deities — were rapidly deteriorating but will now be safe thanks to the urgent digital modelling program that is creating precise records to serve as reference for future restoration.

The project was carried out by LeaderTek using the Getac K120 rugged tablet, along with 3D laser scanners and 3D point cloud processing software, recording a detailed panoramic view of the temple and bringing the skilful handicraft and artistic concepts of Taiwan’s ancestors back to life.

The company had previously used laptops and 3D laser scanning software and hardware but found that commercial solutions were unable to perform at high efficiency for any length of time. The team had to stop working and wait for laptops to cool down every one to two hours and were unable to inspect data taken from 3D scanners on the spot because of glare on the laptop screen.

Artefacts are preserved through digital modelling.

LeaderTek Manager Yao Liang-Chu said the Getac solution was more suited to the project challenges.

“Using the Getac K120, LeaderTek significantly enhanced its work efficiency due to the device’s long-lasting, high-efficiency capabilities. It can work for six hours consecutively, so the team no longer needs to wait for the device to cool down onsite. At the same time, the team can also immediately inspect the point cloud status of the 3D laser scanners and find any unsatisfactory scanning results directly onsite and correct them immediately because of the K120 tablet’s high-visibility screen, which is easy to read even in direct sun.”

The high-visibility screen makes working outdoors easier.

Working outdoors is coupled with an ever-changing environment that can impact on the quality of the work. To combat these issues, the K120 tablet is equipped with a light adjustment button to adjust the brightness of the screen and also meets military-grade specifications and IP66 standards. As a result, the device is shakeproof, waterproof and dustproof, making it suitable for working outdoors.

According to Yao Liang-Chu, the new technology has significantly increased efficiency.

“In the past, 3D scanning was limited by the capabilities of the consumer-grade laptops that LeaderTek was using. Users could only scan 20 station points at most per day. With the Getac rugged K120 tablet, users can now scan up to 70 station points a day, boosting efficiency by 250%.

“The ruggedness of the tablet prevents interruptions in digital modelling due to environmental issues and ensuring smooth work days. LeaderTek will continue to use the Getac K120 and preserve the beauty of Taiwan’s historical monuments through the use of digital technology.”