Handheld Laser Scanners in Industrial Applications: A Review of Metrology-Grade and SLAM-Based Systems
Keywords:
Handheld Laser Scanner, Structured-Light Scanning, SLAM, Dimensional Metrology, Industrial Inspection, Point Cloud, Digital TwinAbstract
Handheld laser scanners have become established tools for measurement and reality capture in industry, yet the single label conceals two technologically distinct families whose accuracies differ by about three orders of magnitude. The first family gathers metrology-grade optical handhelds based on laser triangulation and structured-light projection; these reach volumetric accuracies of roughly 0.02 to 0.1 mm and are used for reverse engineering, dimensional inspection, and geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) verification of manufactured parts. The second family gathers simultaneous localisation and mapping (SLAM) based mobile handhelds, which fuse time-of-flight light detection and ranging (LiDAR) with inertial and visual sensing to reach centimetre-level accuracy, typically 5 to 60 mm, for as-built documentation, plant mapping, and digital-twin creation. This review is organised around that division and confines its scope to industrial and production settings, leaving aside construction, mining, and tunnelling. Drawing on peer-reviewed benchmarks, it describes the working principles of each family, tabulates independently measured accuracy, and reviews representative applications in manufacturing quality control, automotive and aerospace inspection, weld and casting evaluation, and plant documentation. Handheld systems are then positioned against coordinate measuring machines, articulated arms, terrestrial laser scanners, and photogrammetry. The evidence indicates that the two families are complementary rather than competing, that field accuracy is consistently poorer than manufacturer specification, and that a synthesis confined to industrial metrology addresses a real gap, since wearable and mobile handhelds have so far been studied mainly for documentation and cadastre rather than production measurement.
References
[1] K. Helle and I. Solheim, “A case study on use of 3D scanning for reverse engineering and quality control,” Mater. Today Proc., vol. 45, pp. 5255–5262, 2021, doi: 10.1016/j.matpr.2021.01.828.
[2] I. Gumilar, F. Farohi, M. Munarda, B. Bramanto, and G. A. J. Kartini, “The combined use of terrestrial laser scanner and handheld 3D scanner for 3D modeling of piping instrumentation at oil and gas company,” J. Eng. Technol. Sci., vol. 54, no. 6, art. 220603, 2022, doi: 10.5614/j.eng.technol.sci.2022.54.6.3.
[3] E. Cuesta, V. Meana, B. J. Álvarez, S. Giganto, and P. Martínez-Pellitero, “Metrology benchmarking of 3D scanning sensors using a ceramic GD&T-based artefact,” Sensors, vol. 22, no. 22, art. 8596, 2022, doi: 10.3390/s22228596.
[4] P. Guerra, A. Gómez, and F. Barbero, “Comparison of geometrical accuracy of active devices for 3D orthopaedic reconstructions,” Int. J. Adv. Manuf. Technol., vol. 114, no. 3–4, pp. 967–985, 2021, doi: 10.1007/s00170-021-06778-0.
[5] A. Chrbolková, M. Štroner, R. Urban, O. Michal, T. Křemen, and J. Braun, “A comparative study of indoor accuracies between SLAM and static scanners,” Appl. Sci., vol. 15, no. 14, art. 8053, 2025, doi: 10.3390/app15148053.
[6] A. El Yamani, R. Oumaima, and H. Rhinane, “Assessment of NavVis VLX and BLK2GO SLAM scanner accuracy for outdoor and indoor surveying tasks,” Remote Sens., vol. 16, no. 17, art. 3256, 2024, doi: 10.3390/rs16173256.
[7] A. Karabacak and M. Yakar, “Giyilebilir mobil LiDAR’ın kadastroda kullanılabilirliği,” Türkiye Lidar Dergisi, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 52–60, 2023.
[8] A. Karabacak and M. Yakar, “3D modeling of Mufti Abdullah Sıddık Mosque using wearable mobile LiDAR,” Advanced LiDAR, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 1–9, 2023.
[9] E. Kanun, A. Metin, and M. Yakar, “Yersel lazer tarama tekniği kullanarak Ağzıkara Han’ın 3 boyutlu nokta bulutunun elde edilmesi,” Türkiye Lidar Dergisi, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 58–64, 2021, doi: 10.51946/melid.1025856.
[10] L. Karataş, A. Alptekin, and M. Yakar, “Creating architectural surveys of traditional buildings with the help of terrestrial laser scanning method (TLS) and orthophotos: Historical Diyarbakır Sur Mansion,” Advanced LiDAR, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 54–63, 2022.
[11] Ş. Fidan, A. Ulvi, A. Y. Yiğit, S. N. G. Hamal, and M. Yakar, “Combination of terrestrial laser scanning and unmanned aerial vehicle photogrammetry for heritage building information modeling: A case study of Tarsus St. Paul Church,” Photogramm. Eng. Remote Sens., vol. 89, no. 12, pp. 753–760, 2023, doi: 10.14358/PERS.23-00031R2.
[12] S. Di Stefano, F. Gabellone, and M. Buscemi, “Mobile 3D scan LiDAR: A literature review,” Geomatics Nat. Hazards Risk, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 2387–2429, 2021, doi: 10.1080/19475705.2021.1964617.
[13] L. Zhou, Y. Sun, Y. Huang, and J. Qian, “A high-precision handheld line-structured-light 3D measurement system guided by monocular vision,” Sensors, vol. 23, no. 21, art. 8768, 2023, doi: 10.3390/s23218768.
[14] Y. Zhang, X. Liu, and H. Guo, “Fringe-based structured-light 3D reconstruction: Principles, projection technologies, and deep learning integration,” Sensors, vol. 25, no. 3, art. 921, 2025, doi: 10.3390/s25030921.
[15] J. Zhang, Y. Zhang, and R. Wang, “3D LiDAR SLAM: A survey,” Photogramm. Rec., vol. 39, no. 186, pp. 457–517, 2024, doi: 10.1111/phor.12497.
[16] K. Ebadi, L. Bernreiter, H. Biggie, et al., “Present and future of SLAM in extreme environments: The DARPA SubT challenge,” IEEE Trans. Robot., vol. 40, pp. 936–959, 2024, doi: 10.1109/TRO.2023.3323938.
[17] M. Štroner, R. Urban, T. Křemen, J. Braun, O. Michal, and T. Jiřikovský, “Scanning the underground: Comparison of the accuracies of SLAM and static laser scanners in a mine tunnel,” Measurement, vol. 242, art. 115875, 2025, doi: 10.1016/j.measurement.2024.115875.
[18] P. Kalvoda, J. Nosek, M. Kuráč, and P. Vyskočil, “Determination of accuracy and usability of a SLAM scanner GeoSLAM ZEB Horizon: A bridge structure case study,” Appl. Sci., vol. 14, no. 12, art. 5258, 2024, doi: 10.3390/app14125258.
[19] R. Palomar, J. R. Cheng, and P. J. Sørensen, “Evaluation of handheld scanners for automotive applications,” Appl. Sci., vol. 8, no. 2, art. 217, 2018, doi: 10.3390/app8020217.
[20] T. Hegedűs-Kuti, J. Cziner, and M. Gašparík, “3D scanner-based identification of welding defects: Clustering the results of point cloud alignment,” Sensors, vol. 23, no. 5, art. 2503, 2023, doi: 10.3390/s23052503.
