Creating animations of large point cloud datasets generated from terrestrial laser scanners and LiDAR has been an issue for a number of years. While it has been possible using tools such as Leica Geosystems Cyclone or Pointools, just to name a couple, it is still a very cumbersome task. It is exciting to see the CGI industry beginning to adopt the use of this data and developing applications that make it easier to visualize.
Over the last few years, a brand new technology has emerged for creating CGI effects that has already made a big impact on feature film production. It is called point-based rendering, and this powerful technique makes creating global illumination effects for feature film far more practical and efficient than before. In fact, this year the Academy of Motion Picture Art and Sciences awarded the creators of this innovation, Per Christensen, Michael Bunnell and Christophe Hery, with a Scientific and Engineering Academy award.
In this great article written by Nils O Sandys at CGSociety, we will look into the development of this important new technology, how point-based rendering works, and what this all means to the future of feature film production as we know it. Read the full article here.
SCANable is evaluating this promising new software and will follow-up with an indepth review in the coming days. In the meantime, please feel free to check it out for yourself and leave your input here.
Automatic analysis and interpretation of laser scanning data
Floor plans, views and sectional views are created at the push of a button.
Program offers an intuitive user interface (no training required).
For the first time, results can be processed in almost all CAD programs.
Visual representations allow a direct use and will dramatically reduce time needed for analysis and modeling.
Point-Cab is the first application that automatically creates―at the push of a button―floor plans and sectional views. The goal of the development team has been to create an extremely user-friendly interface design.
The program creates a visual representation of laser scanning data. The result has much more expressiveness and validity than individual points of point clouds. Images and representations of sections are a prerequisite for an easy modeling in CAD programs.
The program supports most of the common CAD programs and construction tools through standard interfaces. You may use the results in ArchiCAD, Google SketchUp, Revit and other tools.
Find out for yourself why this revolutionary program can make such a difference for you.Click here to download the Point-Cab trial version. The trial version can be used for 15 hours. Time is consumed when you use the application. Feel free to also download our laser scanning data examples. Please find all data examples here.
Here you can download the processed layout results of the full version of Point-Cab.
https://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Laserscan1.png193300Travis Reinkehttps://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SCANable_Web_Header.webpTravis Reinke2010-04-13 14:55:122010-04-13 14:55:12Create Floor Plans Automatically from 3D Point Clouds [Point-Cab]
Erosion from recent storms uncovered the wreck by Harry R. Feldman Inc.
It is great to finally see people accepting the benefits of laser scanning as a means of digital preservation. Below is an excellent article posted by by Stefanie Geisler, Boston Globe Correspondent. Source
The wreck of the British warship that Paul Revere slipped by on his legendary journey to Lexington in 1775 has resurfaced in the shifting sands of Cape Cod, and federal park officials are seizing the moment by having the wreck “digitally preserved,” using three-dimensional imaging technology.
“We know the wreck is going to disappear again under the sand, and it may not resurface again in our lifetimes,” said William P. Burke, the historian at the Cape Cod National Seashore, noting that the last time any part of the HMS Somerset III had been sighted was 37 years ago.
“Somewhere down the road, if someone’s researching the Somerset, or the effects of ocean currents on shipwrecks, or anything like that, they will have this record,” he said. “We’re in the forever business. We’re looking at tomorrow, but we’re also looking ahead indefinitely.”
The Somerset fought in the American Revolution and had a crew of more than 400. In 1775, Paul Revere slipped through Boston Harbor past the ship before beginning his ride to warn the colonials the British were on the move. In his poem “Paul Revere’s Ride,” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow called it “a phantom ship, with each mast and spar/Across the moon like a prison bar.” The ship sank on Nov. 2, 1778 off the Cape.
After erosion from recent storms, about a dozen of the Somerset’s timbers were found poking through the wet sand at low tide in the national seashore in Provincetown. Park officials called on Harry R. Feldman Inc., a land surveying company from Boston, to make the three-dimensional rendering.
On Thursday, crews set up survey markers and a laser scanning instrument, said Michael Feldman, the company’s president.
The instrument was placed near the timbers, Feldman said. Using the scanner, the surveyors collect millions of data points that are used to create the three-dimensional rendering.
“The great thing about this technology is it not only shows a three-dimensional picture or video of what’s there, it also obtains data down to quarter-inch accuracy,” Feldman said.
It could take several visits to the site to complete the imaging. But when it’s done, the national seashore will have an animated fly-through of the wreck site — and anyone interested in seeing it won’t have to wait for the timbers to reappear.
The imaging will only capture the timbers that are showing. The rest of the wreck, which is buried in sand, might deteriorate if the site were excavated, Burke said.
Most of the crew survived when the ship sank, but they didn’t get a warm welcome when they reached the shore, he said.
“They were pretty upset with them, because the British had been blockading Provincetown for a long time during the war,” Burke said. “They marched all the survivors off the Cape, and eventually exchanged them for American prisoners.”
https://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/wreck_of_somerset_041010.jpg456608Travis Reinkehttps://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SCANable_Web_Header.webpTravis Reinke2010-04-10 19:38:002010-04-10 19:38:00Digitally Preserving American History
In an effort to precisely document the measurements of the Charles W. Morgan, Feldman Land Surveyors from Boston, MA used a Leica Geosystems ScanStation 2 3D laser scanner to create a photo-realistic 3-D model of the ships hold.
History Charles W. Morgan was a U.S. whaleship during the 19th and early 20th century. Ships of this type usually harvested the blubber of whales for whale oil, which was commonly used in lamps during the time period. The ship is currently an exhibit at the Mystic Seaport museum in Mystic, Connecticut.
The ship is named for its original owner, a Quaker whaling merchant who ordered its construction from the shipbuilders Jethro and Zachariah Hillman of New Bedford, Massachusetts. The ship’s maiden voyage began on September 6, 1841, with a journey around Cape Horn and cruised across the Pacific Ocean. Following the Morgan’s initial three year and four month voyage, she came home with 1,600 barrels of sperm oil, 800 barrels of whale oil and 10,000 lbs of whalebone, known as baleen, which was worth around USD$56,000.
The hull and deck of Morgan reflected the industry which she was built to serve. A typical whaleship has three functions:
to serve as a mother ship to a fleet of small whaleboats, which are stored on the davits when not in use,
to serve as a factory and a refinery ship with tryworks for extracting oil from the whale blubber,
to serve as oil tankers.
In her 80 years of service, she made 37 voyages ranging in length from nine months to five years. Charles W. Morgan, in total, brought home 54,483 barrels of sperm whale oil and 152,934 pounds of whalebone. She sailed in the Indian and South Atlantic Oceans, surviving ice and snow storms. Her crew survived a cannibal attack in the South Pacific. Between 1888 and 1904 she was based in San Francisco.
Morgan had more than 1,000 whalemen of all races and nationalities in her lifetime. Her crew included not only Americans, but sailors from Cape Verde, New Zealand, the Seychelles, Guadeloupe, and Norfolk Island. The ship’s crew averaged around 33 men per voyage. As with other whaleships in the 1800s, Morgan often was home to the captain’s family. The Morgan was owned and managed by the J. & W. R. Wing Company of New Bedford.[3]
During its years of service, Charles W. Morgan was used in several movies, including Miss Petticoats (1916), Java Head (1921) and Down to the Sea in Ships (1922).
On the night of June 30, 1924, the Charles W. Morgan caught fire when the flaming wreck of the steamer Sankaty, which had drifted across the Acushnet River from New Bedford harbor in flames, collided with it. Badly charred, Morgan narrowly escaped destruction.[4][5][6]
One of the Charles W. Morgan’s whaleboats, featuring models of crew members with oars and harpoons.
Retirement The whaling days came to an end with the perfection of refining petroleum. Morgan was under the care of Whaling Enshrined, Inc. until 1941, when she was transferred to Mystic Seaport, where she still stands to this day. The ship is the only surviving wooden whaleship from the 1800s American fleet.[7]
Restoration The 1971 U.S. commemorative stamp honoring the Charles W. Morgan
The Charles W. Morgan arrived at Mystic Seaport in December 1941, narrowly avoiding destruction during World War II. The ship was declared a National Historic Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.[2][7][8]
An initial restoration and preservation project was undertaken in 1968. A new restoration effort took place in 2009. Mystic Seaport has recently completed a multi-million dollar shipyard upgrade to accommodate the next phase of Morgan’s restoration, which is currently underway.
In 1971, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp honoring the Charles W. Morgan.
Laser Scanning blends highly accurate measurements with three dimension expression of the space and the relationship among the various structural elements. It not only gives us a record of the vessel but has tremendous value as an educational tool describing the structure to those not familiar with traditional naval architectural drawings.
https://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/cwmorgan.jpg301999Travis Reinkehttps://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SCANable_Web_Header.webpTravis Reinke2010-04-01 23:19:532010-04-01 23:19:53Laser Scanning the Hold of the Charles W. Morgan
Three-dimensional space is a geometric model of the physical universe in which we live, work and are now entertained. Television manufacturers are quickly working to release the 3D-capable broadcasts that cable and satellite providers are already offering. For example, the 2010 Masters will be broadcast live in 3D on CBS, April 8-11. 3D movies used to be a rarity, but are now found weekly in theaters across the nation.
Physical 3D models have been used for decades to visualize City improvements in need of public approval and to help architects portray their ideas to the owner. Topographic contour maps have been used to visualize ground terrain in a two-dimensional environment for drainage studies, military strategy planning, city planning, etc. These models are often costly and take too long to construct.
Printed renderings are more easy and cost-effective to produce, but they lack the interactiveness of even the physical models.
The recent developments and adoption of Building Information Models (BIM) and intelligent 3D models have enabled architects and engineers to reach beyond just building a “pretty picture”. These “intelligent” models serve as a collaboration tool for designers working on different aspects of the project to visualize their designs and avoid any clashes during construction. Once the project is complete, this data can be used for detailed asset/facility life-cycle management.
The industry is now relying more on the virtual 3D models for design and construction and less on the typical 2D plans. However, we are still faced with the dilemma of having a working document that we can physically touch that represents the latest design. If only there was a way to have the best of both worlds – a 3D model on a 2D printed plan.
A while back I stumbled across Zebra Imaging through Twitter and after spending a day at their facility in Austin, Texas, I believe our industry is about to change. They produce full-color printed holographic images that can be used for numerous visualization applications including military planning project and concept demonstrations for investors.
3D is now a standard output for most CAD systems, and is commonly used for viewing terrain data and built environments. ZEBRA Imaging offers a product that allows you to view this data from more than one angle, without having to redraw the images on a computer screen. ZEBRA Imaging provides fairly large – 600mm by 800mm – flat media holograms. They are portable and can be created using a number of data sources; most importantly, they don’t require special tools (e.g. glasses or scopes) for viewing.
The holograms are used in a variety of ways, including military visualizations, project presentations and concept demonstrations for investors.
Monochrome view of New Orleans showing the Superdome.
From ZEBRA Imaging literature:
3-D perspectives are visible horizontally and vertically; one can look over and under the image and from side to side without glasses or goggles
Wide angle of view – horizontal viewing is over 95 degrees, allowing many people to walk around and view an image simultaneously
Allows for unlimited size while maintaining the integrity of the image
Images are projected several feet in front of or behind the hologram and appear to be floating in air
Compact and portable – images are flat or flexible plastic panels that can be stored and shipped easily, taking up very little space
Any 3-D volumetric data set from any source may be used
ZEBRA’s capabilities also include the ability to produce holograms that change depending upon the viewer’s angle. This is beneficial when attempting to depict varying levels of a building, terrain, etc. It is also helpful when trying to portray a particular image before and after an event. For example, Zebra created 3D visual of the Lower Manhattan skyline before and after 9-11. From one angle, a view of the Twin Towers before the disaster can be seen and from another, the rubble in the aftermath.
Before 9-11. (Click for larger image)
After 9-11. (Click for larger image)
The four images below were used at the GEOINT Symposium to show the same corner at four different time periods. Each time the corner is viewed, it shows a different aspect of the structure.
(Click for larger image)
ZEBRA Imaging showed this example of generals looking at an urban area. The entire image is a color hologram – including the generals, the people in the background, etc.
Viewing a Zebra Imaging hologram is a viewing experience that is impossible to appreciate with the 2D limitations of a computer screen. The videos below give you an opportunity to understand how the real-world Zebra holograms appear through the lens of a 2D video camera.
A 57 second video that shows automotive and other manufacturing 3D Zebra holographic images. Contains similar footage as the overview with a few more examples Windows Media – 2.3mb | Quicktime – 15mb
This image shows an interesting real-world application for the Ford Motor Company.
The first movie shows an interesting real-world application for the Ford Motor Company. This image shows the interior layout of a specific car.
A map is a model of reality that allows you to see, understand and analyze geography. ZEBRA Imaging’s offerings extend this model in a most interesting and utilitarian way.
Michael Klug, CTO of Zebra Imaging discusses the technology at Autodesk University 2009:
https://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/100_0671-e1269574404531.jpg499960Travis Reinkehttps://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SCANable_Web_Header.webpTravis Reinke2010-03-26 02:25:372010-03-26 02:25:373D Visualization Comes Alive [Holograms]
HOUSTON, TX March 18, 2010 Coign Asset Metrics & Technologies (CoignAMT), at the direction of Zoo Film Productions of Hollywood, CA, has helped produce IBM’s first globally released television commercial created entirely from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) 3D point cloud data.
CoignAMT used the HDS6100 phase-based laser scanner from Leica Geosystems to create scenes of cars on a freeway, patients in a hospital, electricity grids and much more. The 30-second LiDAR-based commercial is a key part of IBM’s Smarter Planet initiative to portray that data is all around; and that by changing the way the world thinks, companies can maximize the use of data to lower their costs and reduce environmental impact.
Travis Reinke, business sector manager for CoignAMT, says, “Coincidentally, IBM’s perspective is a core part of CoignAMT’s business practice. We help our clients see the long-term value of the data they currently have by using the latest technology, such as 3D laser scanning, to quickly gather an immense amount of data to support their existing “intelligent” systems.”
The Zoo Film Productions crew spent a week in Houston, TX with CoignAMT personnel capturing laser scan data of transmission lines and over 16 blocks of downtown Houston streetscape and surounding buildings. CoignAMT then merged the point cloud data gathered in downtown with 6 square miles of low-altitude helicopter-based LiDAR provided by Aerotec LLC out of Birmingham, AL. Zoo Film Productions crews also created numerous scenes of hospital activities as well as automobiles with and without drivers that CoignAMT scanned individually for use in the commercial.
Reinke continues, “We were honored to be part of this innovative project given the direct correlation between the services CoignAMT provides and IBM’s Smarter Planet initiatives. Using the latest laser scanning technology to visually portray the importance of the data surrounding us was an unforeseen irony. I would never have imagined that we would be using this technology to scan people and cars, objects that are often considered ‘noise’ on a typical inventory project.”
About Coign Asset Metrics & Technologies LLC: Coign Asset Metrics & Technologies, LLC (CoignAMT) is a HUBZone qualified, SBA certified, small business that provides a full range of asset management life cycle services and specialized technologies, including high definition laser scanning (HDLS). Its mission is to strengthen public and private sector organizations by aligning their assets and operational practices with their strategic initiatives. CoignAMT is headquartered in the Pittsburgh, PA area, with regional offices located in Colorado Springs, CO, and Houston, TX. Clients include federal, state, and local governments, as well as private sector customers in the construction, energy, transportation, manufacturing, and security industries.
https://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/IBM_Data_Anthem_02_web1-e1269575231374.jpg539958Travis Reinkehttps://scanable.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SCANable_Web_Header.webpTravis Reinke2010-03-18 10:58:402010-03-18 10:58:40IBM Visualizes a “Smarter Planet” using 3D Laser Scanning Technology [LiDAR]
Creating animations of large point cloud datasets generated from terrestrial laser scanners and LiDAR has been an issue for a number of years. While it has been possible using tools such as Leica Geosystems Cyclone or Pointools, just to name a couple, it is still a very cumbersome task. It is exciting to see the CGI industry beginning to adopt the use of this data and developing applications that make it easier to visualize.
Three-dimensional space is a geometric model of the physical universe in which we live, work and are now entertained. Television manufacturers are quickly working to release the 3D-capable broadcasts that cable and satellite providers are already offering. For example, the 2010 Masters will be broadcast live in 3D on CBS, April 8-11. 3D movies used to be a rarity, but are now found weekly in theaters across the nation.
