AFTE Store - 3D Shooting Incident Analysis and Reconstruction by Means of CloudCompare, an Open-Source Software

Three-dimensional (3D) data has become common-place in the daily work of the forensic expert, crime scene investigator, shooting reconstructionist, and/or expert in ballistics. With new technologies easily available, 3D data can be easily generated from a variety of vendors. The data can be used in the forensic domain and transferred between different services/sections. A variety of software has been developed to handle this 3D data. Each software package has different characteristics and specifications, and their use is often restricted (not open source), meaning that expensive licenses may be required to
unlock the full potential of the software. This technical note aims to present an open-source software solution, which can be easily used to handle 3D data with regard to trajectory reconstruction and ballistic information. The specifications of the software CloudCompare and its application in trajectory reconstruction, allistic information, and crime scene reconstruction are reported and commented on.