ColourCloud software to ‘transform’ laser scans with fast point cloud colourisation overlay
NCTech, the creator of the iSTAR 360º panoramic digital imaging device, reckons its new ColourCloud automatic HDR point cloud colourisation software can significantly reduce the time architects and surveyors spend on site. The company says HDR images are captured at each scan position in just 20 seconds while batch processing reduces post-capture scan colourisation to a fraction of the time normally taken.
The software is designed to offer architects and surveyors ‘speedy, pixel-perfect overlay’ to support iSTAR files and e57 industry standard laser scan outputs from leading scanner manufacturers including Trimble, Leica Geosystems and Faro.
NCTech says the ColourCloud process provides fully automatic colourisation which speeds up workflow rates, requires no stitching, resolves parallax issues and is precision calibrated to sub-pixel accuracy, resulting in full colour HDR overlay from any laser scan to within +/-2 pixels.
“From our research, we know Architecture and Surveying professionals want the ability to speed up workflow rate where laser scanning and imaging is concerned,” explains Neil Tocher, Chief Technical Officer of NCTech . “ColourCloud is designed to use a single open file format to integrate into the existing output from software across all manufacturers scanning devices and is a significant improvement on existing processes which can take a professional considerable time to colourise a single 3D scan from a scanner.
“This means that hundreds of millions of 3D scan data points can be colourised from an iSTAR image in seconds. We are redefining the colourisation process with total automation in a fraction of the time it currently takes.”
As a comparison, NCTech highlights an example in which the iSTAR camera captured a 50 million pixel image within 20 seconds; the same resolution scan (without colour) would take around 20-30 minutes.
A high dynamic range capture of up to nine exposures takes just over two minutes with iSTAR, says NCtech, adding that this is a fully automatic process, done at the push of a button.
NCTech will be holding a webinar on the 10th March to mark the launch of its new ColourCloud automated point-cloud colourisation software.
More details here.
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