Point Clouds

Has anyone used any of these Surveys?

If so do you use the raw Point Cloud data or do you receive a 3D model from the surveyors?

I'm wondering how easy is it to work with the point cloud data to create a 3D model?

and also what software do you use?

I use cloud works as a software along with a 3d scanner.

I do create 3d models using the info from the scanner.

Did you have any questions on it?

I should learn to read these.

I use the raw data, well once it’s been put in the right OS and all scans have been put together.

I draw some models from the data and it's not too bad, you have to keep slicing the "cloud" but in terms of info its great (or over kill)

My only issue with it is it's all about interpretation i.e. I may think the wall or window start here but you might think its starts a few mill away.

It’s grown up dot to dot.

i have used the faro system with Geomagic software. The geomagic software interpolates the point cloud info and creates a surface model. You then use the software to align multiple point cloud surfaces and create a solid model to be exported.

I have used point cloud data in unigraphics, it has a point cloud option.

In autocad i have tried to use point cloud info to create splines, then i use these splines to create surfaces. It really depends on what the end result is going to be. I have used this to model surface of car parts(tail lights, dash boards etc) for instrumentation purposes. I have never used this info for a terrain map.

I'm just trying to get my head around the work flow really, I never heard of point clouds until the other day.

The aim is to get a model of an existing pump station with pipes etc, and from there I want to model some proposed piping.

I want to be able to model the proposed in Solidworks and so far I've just imported the point cloud data.

The surveyors offer the options of either giving us the point cloud data from which we can create out own model or they'll do the model for us for quite a bit extra. Ideally I want to do the model as we could end up using this method a lot.

I want to know how easy it is to use their data and how much of the modelling would be automated using software or whether the point cloud is just used more as a visual aid to model on top of. So yes a giant dot to dot!

I'm happy modelling pretty much anything and when in Solidworks I created a section plane through the cloud and then tried to sketch a circle where I could see the section went through a pipe shown in the point data. The problem was my sketch lines didn't snap to any of the points.

I hope I'm making sense!

Do you NEED specialist software to do the modelling from the cloud? If so, can you name a few of the good ones, if there are any apart from the ones you've mentioned.

And how would you model it exactly? I mean, would you do a lot of it by eye using standard primatives, use planes? Or what?

Cheers for the replies guys.

What is the format of data you have?

begins with 'a' I think, it's one of the common ones I believe, not at work , dear oh dear I should really stop thinking about work!

Here's a paper on it...

http://www.photogrammetry.ethz.ch/general/persons/fabio/tarasp_modeling.pdf

A google search for "point cloud" produces a good bit of info.

Also note in the external links of the wikipedia entry for point cloud there is a software called MeshLab that can convert it.

Geomagic Studio 9 is what was recomended to me to use with the Faro arm laser scanner. The problem you run into is the available options when scanning something yourself. If you are just given point cloud data you have no idea which dot connect to what. And depending on their output filetype you may or may not be able to select their points. with geomagic i could scan right into the software and manipulate the point cloud in raw form. Here is a screen shot of unigraphics with the surface from point cloud button highlighted.

I really enjoy using USG for modeling(surface). It has an extremely powerful setup but it comes with a big price as well. You can get a 30day trial of geomagic and play with it. If you can upload or send me a small sample of your point cloud data i can see what UGS will do but i have never used it for point cloud data .

i also uploaded a second pic that was a point scan of a tail light housing. I placed "dots" on the housing for reference at set intervals and you can see things arent complete.

The point cloud's not ours to distribute so I can't show you unfortunately.

We will know what each of the fittings are on the survey so that's not a problem. I'll check out some of those links.

We're interested in this initially for a building approx 40(L)x20(W)x20m(D) with pipe networks running inside.

We use a 3D laser scanner with a range on 80 meters which gives us more detail then we really need but it's better to have to much than not enough.

I use Autocad 2008 in conjuction with Cyclone v6.0, the cloud/points are given to me in the correct OS.

You can slice the cloud data as thick or as thin as you like to see all detail of your project so providing you have been on site or at least have photos its not to hard to see where abouts you are on site as every 3 mm is a point to work from.

The way ours works in terms of strengh of reading is blue/green is the best followed by orange down to red.

Its not that hard to draw a model useing a cloud as long as you understand the way UCS and dot to dot works.

Sorry but i've never used Solidworks.

Here are a few examples (very primitive) of the pipe modeling that can be done in Cyclone.

I can import these solids into AutoCAD and go from there. Cyclone isn't a very strong modeling program, but it has its uses.

To model the pipes, it samples the point cloud information, and builds within user set tolerances.

One of my clients found this useful:

http://www.sycode.com/products/terraincad_ac/index.htm