Laser scanning 563 million years of evolution: the JISC GB/3D type fossils online project
Mike P.A. Howe, National Geoscience Data Centre, British Geological Survey
The ICZN and the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi and plants require that every species or subspecies of organism should have a type specimen to define its characteristic features. These specimens are held in collections and must be available for study. Over time, collections have been moved or amalgamated, and type specimens can deteriorate or become lost.
The British Geological Survey, the National Museum Wales, the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge and the Oxford Museum of Natural History are working together in a JISC funded project to create an online database of the type fossils they hold. Five NextEngine HD laser scanners are being used to make the 3D digital models, and Canon EOS 5D digital single lens reflex cameras with a range of macro lenses are being used to take the images of the fossils and their associated labels. A simple see-saw stage enables the production of stereo-pairs. The web portal provides data about each specimen, searchable on taxonomic, stratigraphic and spatial criteria. High resolution photographs and stereo anaglyphs may be viewed and downloaded (.JP2), and many 3D scans (.PLY and .OBJ) are available. The free downloads of MeshLab™ and SpiersView™ are recommended for viewing and manipulating the 3D models. For more information about the project, see http://gb3dtypefossils.blogspot.co.uk/
The Web has transformed expectations in accessing information and is now usually the first port of call. Many museums are providing web-searchable text catalogues, but few have undertaken a large-scale program of providing images and 3D models. This project represents the largest exercise to date in assembling 3D digital models, images and anaglyphs and will provide a major resource for Virtual Palaeontology.
Click the image to see it on a large size:
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Examples of digital fossil models viewed in MeshLab™ v.1.2.3, a free, open-source, 3D mesh processing software program.
Speaker biography
Dr Mike Howe, Chief Curator, British Geological Survey (BGS), is responsible for their extensive collections of geological materials, ranging from type fossils to North Sea oil well rock cores, and from part of Darwin’s rock collection to some of the earliest petrological “thin sections” (microscope slides) ever made. It is probably the largest collection of British geological materials. He has been in post for 12 years and has pioneered the development of the various sample databases (PalaeoSaurus, Britrocks and ComBo), and most importantly, their linking to the web. Previously, he was employed by the Universities of Leicester and Warwick, and he has also held key managerial and production positions in manufacturing companies. He is currently chair of the Geological Curators Group, an affiliated body to the Geological Society of London. In November 2011 he won a JISC grant of £691k for the ‘GB/3D Fossil Types online’ project.
