Economic Solution for Spatial Reconstruction Using LiDAR Technology in Forensic Sciences

Crime scene investigation (CSI) is a multidisciplinary process that includes a progressive and methodological search of the crime scene along with observation skills of the investigator who may use his/her logical and deductive reasoning to gain knowledge of the events surrounding the crime scene which can be processed by carefully acquiring and analyzing physical evidence which might help in detecting the cause or the culprit of the crime scene. Documentation is one of the most essential aspect of an investigation involving photography and videography. This process of documentation serves as a future reference for in-depth analysis of possible clues in the digital evidence, and reconstruction of the crime scene, and also serves as backup evidence in the courtrooms. Currently, 3D terrestrial laser scanners are used by experts for spatial analysis of a crime scene. Our research evaluates the use of canvas© 3D pocket scanner software for the 3D recording of a small-scale crime scene. This work brings the breakthrough of creating 3D models of crime scenes in a fast, easy, and economical way using LiDAR technology. This method is proved to be useful for the primary recreation of crime scene evidence collection.