The study is based on the finite element model which was developed to investigate the nonlinear breathing behavior of transverse cracks in terms of crack location and rotation speed. The crack model is built using the released strain energy concept in fracture mechanics. Zero Stress Intensity Factor (SIF) method is employed to determine the crack closure line at each time step by calculating the stress intensity factor of opening mode for prescribed resolutions in crack area. The crack is considered open at the points where the stress intensity factor for opening mode is larger than zero. The stiffness matrix is updated at every time step by integrating compliant coefficients over instantly calculated crack open area. With the updated stiffness and force matrices, the vibration response at next time step is solved by Newmark integration method. To investigate the effectiveness of laser scanner, parametric study is conducted to analyze the vibration responses collected by the laser scanner with different scanning functions and frequencies. With this model, the displacement or velocity along the shaft can be extracted to form time based data sets for different scanning function or scanning frequency to explore its usefulness for damage identification.Copyright © 2015 by ASME