A 436Kb PDF of this article as it appeared in the magazine—complete with images—is available by clicking HERE
The vision of the founding members of ASPRS was farsighted indeed. Their 1934 mission to advance knowledge and understanding of the mapping sciences today encompasses a broad spectrum of scientific, social and commercial enterprises. To complement the timeline in this month's American Surveyor article about ASPRS, we've included some exciting info about today's cutting-edge aerial imaging technology in the following pages. Even more exciting is to see these solutions in person (along with a whole lot more)! Make plans now to meet the movers and shakers behind all the new ideas and technology and see what lies ahead for this industry by attending ASPRS 2010 in San Diego, California (April 26-30). More info is available at www.asprs.org.
Definiens eCognition®
The next level in geo-spatial image analysisA revolutionary solution for geo-spatial image analysis, the Definiens Enterprise Image IntelligenceTM Suite combines all digital workflow components into one powerful package: Definiens Developer unlocks a new level of objectbased image analysis with highly customizable rule sets and automation capabilities. Definiens Architect empowers even non-technical professionals to use the advantages of Definiens Developer via easily configurable image analysis workflows. Finally, Definiens eCognition® Server provides a batch processing environment for the highly configurable, automatic analysis of thousands of images.
This award-winning package is supplemented by the unique eCognition Community, a network that promotes collaboration and advancement within the earth sciences community. The Definiens Enterprise Image IntelligenceTM Suite has been the No.1 choice in the industry for more than a decade. To find out why, visit http://earth.definiens. com today to learn about the powerful Definiens Earth Sciences product offering.
LizardTech's LiDAR Compressor
In another of a long line of productivity tools, and responding to long-standing requests, LizardTech announces the release of LiDAR compression for industry-standard MrSID. Designed for LAS and text files, the Generation 4 (MG4) format offers two compression levels. The first will result in a 75 percent reduction in file size while retaining all the points and precision and accuracy of the original file. The second virtually lossless level can reduce file sizes by 90 percent, and contains less root mean square error than the sensor that captured the original data.
The software readily handles huge point clouds generated by airborne or terrestrial laser scanners, and allows users to easily extract derivatives.
Optech's ALTM Products
Optech's prominence as a world leader in the development and manufacture of advanced laser-based survey and imaging instruments extends over the last 35 years. Throughout, Optech has worked closely with academic, government, military, naval, air force and space-based organizations to meet their specialized application needs.
As a pioneer in the field of LiDAR imaging and ranging technology, Optech developed the world's first commercial airborne laser terrain mapper, now known around the world as ALTM. Available in both application- and platform-dependent configurations, Optech ALTMs offer the greatest flexibility and efficiency available to the professional surveyor today.
Applanix DSS (Digital Sensor System)
An end-to-end solution for high-efficiency aerial mapping and orthophoto projects, at one low cost.
The DSS is a complete, ready-to-use, medium-format digital aerial imaging solution that includes the fusion of an aerial camera, a flight management system, a GNSS-Aided INS Direct Georeferencing system and a full suite of processing software. As a mapping-quality alternative to the large format sensor, DSS uses direct georeferencing to capture and generate high-resolution color and color-infrared digital orthophotos from the air. Applanix software and optimized workflow enables rapid orthophoto generation. Certified by the USGS, this out-of-the-box solution is THE digital imaging answer for aerial survey and remote sensing applications requiring a rapid, cost-effective solution.
DSS comes professionally installed with 7 days of on-site training and 24/7 worldwide customer support.
Editorial: Maps as a Metaphor
"I know this world is ruled by infinite intelligence. Everything that surrounds us--everything that exists--proves that there are infinite laws behind it. There can be no denying this fact. It is mathematical in its precision." There are many surveyors and mappers and members of the precision community who concur with these words of Thomas Edison. Economy, too, hangs on immutable laws. One of the .... Read the Article
Measuring a Caribbean Disaster
On January 12, 2010, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the city of Port-au-Prince, the capital and largest city of Haiti. Tens of thousands of buildings collapsed, and more than 200,000 people died in the disaster. Earthquakes are not unexpected in Haiti. The country sits astride several fault lines, among them the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault .... Read the Article
3D-Laser Scanning and Surveying Collide
LandAir Surveying started business in 1988 performing site surveys and topographic surveys for contractors in Georgia and surrounding states with two survey crews and a total staff of less than 10. By 1998 the firm expanded to surveying cell tower sites for the telecommunications industry (more than 3,000 sites in four years) using ... Read the Article
Another Triumph!
He's done it again. Javad Ashjaee has released an impressive state-of-the-art product that enables surveyors to expand their GNSS capabilities. On June 29, 2010 Javad unveiled the Triumph VS at the company's 40,000 square foot newly designed headquarters and JAVAD EMS boardmanufacturing facility in San Jose, California. Over the decades ... Read the Article
Product Review: Hemisphere GPS R220
One of the recent trends in precision GPS manufacturing is the enclosed, fully integrated receiver. This is no doubt in response to market demands by surveyors in the field for gear that offers more durability and less complexity in setting up and getting to work. This trend has certainly offered surveyors many benefits, however, it has also ushered in a few limitations. For instance, many of these ... Read the Article
Comprehensive Collection
Recording the location, dimensions and physical attributes of every piece of equipment constituting rural utilities throughout the United States might seem like a tall order. But information tools used to build a GIS have advanced so much in recent years that the endeavor is not only possible, but plausible. Great Falls, Montana-based GeoNav Group International, Inc. recently acquired the technology to pull .... Read the Article
Feedback
Doing a Proper Job: I have a better reason for the legal profession insisting on a metes and bounds descriptions for dependent resurveys than clerk mentality or ancient check lists. In his article "Rewriting Legal Descriptions" [Vol. 7, Num. 4], Gary Kent's example of "the most egregious example of description rewriting is the preparation of a metes and bound description for a property that is a lot in ... Read the Comments
Vantage Point: "Just" What?
Several months ago my husband and I were working on a rail to trail conversion in our neighborhood, digging out debris and planting trees. At one point I was separating the junk found in the digging process from the recyclable beer cans and glass bottles when someone walked up and started talking to me. With my head still down, in the midst of trying to subdue a long strand of barbed wire into a ... Read the Article
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