The development of a low-cost photometric-stereo-based material scanner

Capturing accurate texture maps from physical materials remains a challenge in digital prototyping and projection-based spatial augmented reality (P-SAR). This paper presents an open-source material scanning system based on photometric stereo, designed for affordability, simplicity, and efficient operation. The system combines a consumer-grade digital camera, multifaceted reflector (MR16) LED lighting, and Arduino-controlled automation to acquire material data up to A4 size within 15 s. Accurate colour reproduction is achieved through a hybrid calibration workflow that integrates camera profiling with a 3D lookup table. The resulting images are processed in a streamlined Substance 3D Designer pipeline to generate albedo and normal maps compatible with physically based rendering (PBR). To evaluate performance under realistic conditions, two fabric samples were scanned and qualitatively compared with professionally digitised references. Albedo maps were assessed based on dominant colour accuracy using CIEDE2000 (ΔE₀₀), while normal maps were evaluated through visual rendering comparisons and directional distribution analysis. Scanning and processing times were also measured to verify workflow efficiency. Results demonstrate that the proposed system produces perceptually consistent textures suitable for real-time rendering applications while offering a low-cost and customisable solution for material digitisation.