AI Card Scanning

How Card Scanning Works

WaxEngine uses AI vision (a combination of Gemini and Claude multimodal models) to identify hockey cards from photographs. Instead of manually typing card details, you upload a photo of the front (and optionally the back) of each card, and the AI extracts:

• Player name, Full name as printed on the card
• Set/product, e.g., Upper Deck Series 1, O-Pee-Chee Platinum
• Year/season, e.g., 2024-25
• Card number, The number printed on the back
• Parallel/variant, e.g., Base, Young Guns, Black Rainbow, Speckle Refractor
• Additional attributes, Rookie designation, serial numbering, insert set name

Scanning a Card

Step 1: Open the Scanner

Click Scan on the dashboard. The scanning panel opens with an upload area.

Step 2: Upload Front and Back

1. Upload a photo of the card front
2. Optionally upload the back, including it noticeably improves accuracy, since the card number on the back is the most reliable identifier
3. Click Scan

Any photo source works: phone camera, flatbed scanner, or webcam. You can even do this from your phone and upload straight from the camera.

Step 3: Review the AI Results

The scan results appear with all extracted fields pre-filled, along with the AI’s reasoning, for example:

Player: Connor McDavid
Set: 2024-25 Upper Deck Series 1
Card #: 75
Parallel: Base
Confidence: High, player photo matches, card number confirmed on back,
            set logo visible in corner

Step 4: Correct if Needed

AI identification is accurate the vast majority of the time, but you can edit any field before proceeding. Common corrections include:

• Parallel variants that look similar (e.g., distinguishing a Silver Foil from a base card)
• Obscure insert sets from recent or niche products
• Serial-numbered cards where the number may not be clearly visible in the photo

What Makes This Accurate

The AI analyzes multiple visual elements simultaneously:

Front of Card

• Player photograph and jersey details
• Team logo and colors
• Set branding and design elements
• Parallel-specific visual treatments (foil, refractor patterns, colored borders)
• Rookie designation badges (e.g., “YOUNG GUNS” banner)

Back of Card

• Card number (most reliable identifier)
• Player name and biographical information
• Set name and copyright year
• Serial numbering (e.g., “127/249”)
• Manufacturer information

The combination of front and back gives the AI enough context to make high-confidence identifications even for parallel variants that are visually subtle.

Photo Tips for Best Results

Lighting

• Use even, diffuse lighting to avoid glare on foil and refractor cards
• Avoid overhead lights that create hot spots on glossy surfaces
• Natural daylight works well for most card types

Framing

• Fill the frame with the card and keep the background minimal
• Shoot straight-on and keep the card flat, angles distort the text
• Make sure the photo is in focus, especially the card number on the back

Card Condition

• Cards in top loaders or penny sleeves can still be scanned through the plastic
• Remove cards from thick magnetic cases if glare is an issue
• One card per photo, multiple cards in a single scan are not supported

Duplicate Detection During Scanning

When you scan a card, WaxEngine checks it against your existing active listings using 3-layer duplicate protection:

Exact Match

The scanned card matches an active listing with the same player, card number, year, AND parallel type. The scan will be flagged with a red DUPLICATE badge.

Likely Match

The scanned card matches player, card number, and year, but the parallel is different. This gets an amber POSSIBLE DUPLICATE badge. This is intentional, you might legitimately have both a base card and a parallel of the same card.

No Match

No existing listing matches. The card proceeds to pricing normally.

Duplicate detection compares against your latest analysis data. Run Analyze at least once so WaxEngine knows what you already have live on eBay.

From Scan to Listing

After scanning, cards flow through this pipeline:

Upload Photos
    |
    v
AI Identification (Gemini + Claude)
    |
    v
Duplicate Check (3-layer protection)
    |
    v
Price Suggestion (5-pillar pricing engine)
    |
    v
Price Review
    |
    v
Save to Inventory
    |
    v
Publish to eBay (one click)

Each step is visible in the UI. You can pause at any point, for example, scanning a batch of 20 cards, reviewing them all at once, then publishing together.

Title Generation

During the scan-to-listing pipeline, WaxEngine automatically generates an eBay listing title:

• Expands common abbreviations (e.g., “RC” to “Rookie Card”, “SP” to “Short Print”)
• Includes key search terms: player name, year, set, card number, parallel
• Fills up to eBay’s 80-character limit for maximum search visibility
• Avoids redundant words and uses the most search-relevant terms first

You can further optimize titles using the Title Optimization tool, which reviews and improves titles across your entire inventory.

Scan Allowance

Your subscription includes 1,000 AI card scans per month. Front and back count as a single scan, since both images are analyzed together for one card.

• Your remaining scans are visible in your account settings
• Need more? Extra scans are available at $4.95 per 250-pack
• The allowance resets at the start of each billing cycle

Troubleshooting

”Low confidence” identification

• Check image quality, blurry or dark photos reduce accuracy
• Include a back photo with the card number clearly visible
• Try removing the card from its sleeve if glare is an issue

Slow scan response

• AI identification typically takes a few seconds
• Large image files take longer to upload, the app compresses automatically
• Check your internet connection if scans are timing out

Next Steps

• Pricing Engine, How the AI determines suggested prices for scanned cards
• Tier Management, What happens to your listings after they are published
• FAQ, Common questions about card scanning accuracy