Dirk’s Organ Roll Scanner 2.

Build Instructions

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Dirk’s Organ Roll Scanner.

The Organ Roll Scanner is a software application that can scan Barrel Organ Rolls up to 32 keys, just
by transporting the organ roll underneath a webcam. The software uses image recognition techniques to
‘read’ the organ roll and convert it into a midi file.

The generated midi files can be used to program the sound modules of modern midi organs or to
change them, print them and punch new organ rolls. Dirk’s Projects does not have the software to do
this, but there are other sources that do.

The mechanical transport mechanism.

To scan the organ rolls the software needs a mechanical transporting mechanism that can transport the
organ roll from the beginning to the end just like the organ does. The transporting mechanism is quite
easy to build. It does not need pneumatics, electronics or complicated mechanics. It just uses a USB
webcam to scan the organ roll. All complicated tasks are handled by the software.

At the moment the software is sold without the transporting mechanism. This document gives
instructions on how to build the transporting mechanism. Another document (Dirk’s Organ Roll Scanner
Manual) describes the use of the software.

In the near future it will be possible to buy the transporting mechanism together with the software so you
don’t need to build it yourself. This transporting mechanism will be electrically driven and equipped with
power led lighting for the best scanning results.

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Table of content.

Dirk’s Organ Roll Scanner............................................................................................................... 2

The mechanical transport mechanism............................................................................................. 2
Table of content............................................................................................................................... 3
What is in these building instructions? ............................................................................................ 4
Principles of the transporter............................................................................................................. 5
The webcam.................................................................................................................................... 9
Lighting.......................................................................................................................................... 11

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What is in these building instructions?

These building instructions describe the important things you need to keep in mind when building the
transporting mechanism for the organ roll scanner. If you stick to these instructions the organ roll
scanner will be able to successfully scan your organ rolls and convert them into good midi files.

These instructions do not give exact drawings or measurements. The measurements are dependent on
things like the width of the organ rolls you like to scan and the webcam you like to use. You can build a
complete stand alone transporting mechanism or you can build only the top part and mount it on an
existing organ.

The photos in this document are taken from a proto type transport mechanism. It is electrically driven
and equipped with power led lighting. You could also build one that is manually driven and without build-
in lighting. You will need a bright light (like a halogen desk lamp) next to the transport mechanism to
illuminate the organ roll.

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Principles of the transporter.

The principle of the mechanical transport mechanism is to use a webcam and an easy mechanical
mechanism to transport the organ roll beneath the webcam. The scanner software will automatically
detect the speed of the movement just by analyzing the webcam images. This way the speed of the
movement is not important and may change during scanning. The resulting speed of the midi sound will
always be right. The maximum speed is a bit faster than the normal organ roll playing speed (about 10
cm per second) in its organ.

The transport mechanism uses standard plastic organ roll spools in a wooden case.

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The organ roll moves over a square wooden plate with a black (not shiny) piece of plastic on top of it.
This black color is necessary to get a good contrast in the webcam images. This piece of plastic can (for
example) be cut out of a black DVD box.

The webcam is placed above the organ roll in the top of the transporter. The distance from the organ roll
paper up to the webcam depends on the webcam image. This is explained in detail in the paragraph
‘The webcam’. Two power leds are placed on each side of the webcam to illuminate the organ roll. You
could also use a halogen desk lamp next to the transporter for this.

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The only connection from the transporter to the computer is the USB cable of the webcam.

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To let the spools rotate smoothly in the wooden slots, ball bearings that fit on the spool’s axis are used.

The transporter can use an electrical motor or a manual driven beam.

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The webcam.
The scanner needs a webcam that supports a resolution of 320 x 240. Most modern webcams support
this resolution, even the cheap ones. All webcams that are supported by DirectX can be used by the
scanner. Nearly all webcams are. The webcam should support a speed of at least 30 frames per second
at a resolution of 320 x 240. The scanner will note use this high frame rate, but slower webcams tend to
blur one image into the next, making the note recognition less accurate.

The organ roll must move from the upper side to the lower side of the webcam image. The webcam
image should be about 5 millimeters wider than the organ roll on each side of the roll. This can be
achieved by adjusting the height of the webcam (the distance from the organ roll up to the webcam).
This height depends on the width of the organ roll and the type of webcam. This height must be known
to determine the measurements of the transporter. The space in the image on the left and right side of
the roll must be black (the background plastic) to get a good contrast so the scanner can detect the
edges of the organ roll accurately. The background behind the holes must be black as well. The scanner
uses the detected roll edges to determine the positions of the note tracks where it expects to find the
holes. The positions of the tracks will automatically be compensated by the software when the organ roll
(or the webcam) rotates or tilts a little.

The guide side of the organ roll can be on the left or on the right side of the webcam image. The setting
‘Guide side on the left of the webcam image’ in the ‘Video capture device’ section in the scanner
software selects between the two.

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The webcam could be disassembled to save some space. On the front and back side the resistors for
the power led lights are visible.

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Lighting.
The webcam image must be free of shadows for good quality image recognition. This is the most
important reason for good lighting. For the lighting a halogen desk lamp could be used. The example
transporter in this document uses two power leds to illuminate the organ roll and eliminate any shadows.

The webcam will automatically adjust for the intensity of the light. If the image is too light then the
webcam will darken the image. If the light is more intense, the webcam tends to be faster. This is why
the organ roll should be illuminated by a bright light.

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