Choosing a capture method
Van Line Pro gives you five ways to build an inventory. Here's what each one does, what it needs, and when to reach for it.
Every item on the inventory has to get there somehow. Van Line Pro gives you five ways to add items to a job, and you can mix them freely in the same job, the same room, even the same wall. Pick whichever is fastest for what's in front of you.
All five start from an open job. On the job screen you'll find Scan a room (LiDAR), Photograph items, Dictate items, and Add room; the catalog opens from Add item on any room.
Who this is for: Crew and estimators building an inventory on-site.
The five methods at a glance
| Method | How it works | Cube is | Needs | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LiDAR scan / walk & talk | Walk the room; the scanner measures the space and each piece while you narrate | Measured | A Pro device with LiDAR | A full room, fast, with real measurements |
| Photograph items | Take or choose a photo; AI lists what it sees, or on-device Vision names one item | Estimated | Camera (falls back to your photo library) | Boxes, lamps, electronics, anything hard to isolate-scan |
| Dictate items | Speak your items; the app parses them into a list | Estimated | Microphone + speech permission | Hands-free listing while you walk |
| Add from the catalog | Search a standard household-goods list and tap to add | Estimated | Nothing (works everywhere) | Known pieces, cartons, quick manual entry |
| The Item Editor | Add or edit one item by hand, field by field | Whatever you enter | Nothing (works everywhere) | Corrections, custom items, one-offs |
Note: "Measured" means LiDAR locked a real size in cubic feet onto the piece. "Estimated" means the size is a typical figure from the catalog, which you can correct or re-measure. The Item Editor shows each item's source (Scanned, Catalog, Photo (est.), or Manual).
What needs special hardware
- LiDAR scanning needs a Pro device. It runs on iPhone Pro models (12 Pro and newer) and iPad Pro. On a non-Pro iPhone or the Simulator, the app shows "Scanning unavailable" instead of the scanner.
- Photograph items needs a camera for live capture. On a device without one (like the Simulator), the Take photo button is hidden and you use Choose photo to pull an image from your library instead.
- Dictate items needs microphone and speech permission. The app asks the first time.
- The catalog and the Item Editor work on any device, no camera, no LiDAR, no microphone.
When to use each
- Building a whole room quickly? Use the LiDAR scan. Walking and narrating (walk and talk) is the fastest path and the only one that produces measured cubes.
- Item LiDAR can't isolate (a stack of boxes, a floor lamp, a TV)? Use Photograph items. With AI on, one photo of the room can return the whole list of pieces it sees.
- Hands full, or you just want to talk? Use Dictate items. Speak "leather sofa, two nightstands, a 55-inch TV" and it becomes a reviewable list.
- You know exactly what the piece is? Use the catalog. Search, tap, set a quantity, add. Cartons live here too.
- Fixing or adding one thing by hand? Open the Item Editor directly, or choose Custom from the catalog.
Good to know
- Every method lands the same kind of item. However a piece was captured, it becomes a numbered inventory item you can open and edit. Damage, photos, and handling symbols are added afterward in the Item Editor.
- AI is a company setting. The photo and scan flows behave differently when your company has AI analysis turned on. With it off, they fall back to on-device behavior. Nothing AI suggests is ever added without your review.
- One piece, one number. Every physical piece gets its own permanent inventory number, including each carton. There is no quantity field on a finished item. See Item numbers: Void vs. Delete.