Pelican Imaging has created a new type of camera. The Pelican camera is a plenoptic, also called light-field, camera which uses 16 smaller lenses in a 4x4 grid rather than one large lens in order to save space. The Pelican camera is under 3mm thickness, which makes it the thinnest smartphone camera currently available. The cameras also contain 3D depth information, which can be converted into a JPEG file. Some of its features include changing the focal point, combining images, changing backgrounds, and applying filters. The Pelican camera can also capture video and linear measurements.

Pelican Imaging and 3D Printing

Pelican has been playing with 3D printing in conjunction with their camera. Pelican headquarters has already 3D printed a Kermit the Frog pez dispenser using images from the Pelican camera, modeling it, and then printing it. Pelican plans to make 3D printing with the camera a reality for consumers in the future. You would make a video or scan an object/person by taking a series of photos and then sending the result to the 3D printer to be created into a 3D figure.