Artifacts are fragile. They are easily destroyed by natural disasters, environmental influences, or by conflict. Now researchers from the Fraunhofer IGD, a leading institute for research in visual computing, have devised a six-meter long conveyor belt scanner that could help preserve such artifacts.

It can be used to record form, structure, color and surface texture and create virtual models of sculptures, tools, fossils and more. The images can even be printed by 3D printers to create objects for pleasure or for research purposes.