Cadalyst - January/February 2009 - (Page 17) techtrends CAD drafter was able to work in the comfort of an office, with a warm cup of coffee, Graham pointed out. “In archeology, traditionally, [the clients] want 2D detailed drawings because they can archive these on paper,” explained Graham. “No matter what people say, paper archives are still the most reliable.” With digital files, some formats could fall out of favor, becoming a casualty of the tug-of-war among software vendors’ competition. Digital files could also become corrupt, unreadable after a period of time. A media that survives a decade might be deemed sufficiently durable in the fast-evolving technology sector, but in archeology, time is measured in hundreds and thousands of years. When he has to do onsite work, Graham carries a Panasonic Toughbook, a rugged laptop computer designed for outdoor environments. With Leica’s Cyclone software installed on his machine, he is able to register point clouds right at the site, creating a panoramic view of the target and the nearby landscape that’s georeferenced. “This way, if the client drops our deliverables into a GIS [geographic information system] program, it’ll show up at the right place,” he noted. Leica’s CloudWorx modules allow surveyors such as Graham to work with the large point-cloud data sets directly in the CAD environment preferred by their clients. Currently, CloudWorx plug-ins are available for AutoCAD, MicroStation, Aveva PDMS plant design software, and Intergraph SmartPlant Review. In addition, Leica provides Leica Cyclone PUBLISHER software for publishing point clouds in an Internet-friendly format for intuitive viewing, measuring, and markup. The output can be viewed using Leica TruView, a free download. With PUBLISHER and TruView, government entities in charge of heritage sites such as Nenagh Castle can publish rich, panoramic views of the sites on their public web sites to promote interest. New Tricks The next time someone asks Graham to scan and unwrap a castle — or anything shaped like a castle — he might not have to use the manual alignment method he used for Nenagh Castle. In October, while attending Leica Geosystems HDS and Airborne Sensor Worldwide User Conference in San Ramon, California, Graham met another presenter who’s written executable code to automatically accomplish the same task. But he hasn’t yet come across any plug-ins to help him draw detailed stonework in AutoCAD based on point clouds, so he’ll just have to do it the old-fashioned way — one stone at a time. Cadalyst executive editor Kenneth Wong explores the innovative use of technology and its implications. Read his blog at www.cadalyst.com/kw. Architects ! Structural Engineers ! MEP Consultants ! Quantity Surveyors ! OUTSOURCE Omnix International is a US $ 100 M company based in Dubai, UAE since 1987 having over 19 years of association with Autodesk as a Value Added Distributor for Middle East. Omnix has 250 strong CAD services team including 100+ Revit experts. Revit ® MODELING Revit Services 3D Modeling - Architectural, Structural & MEP Clash Detection (using Autodesk NavisWorks®) Construction Animation (using Autodesk NavisWorks®) Revit Library / Family Creation Revit - 3ds Max Perspectives and Animation Raise your Bottom Line! Jitendra Deshpande Value Added Distributor (Middle East) jitendra@omnix.ae Cell: +971-50-9106991 www.omnixcae.ae International L.L.C P.O.Box 50999, Dubai, UAE Tel: +971-4-334 4495 Fax: +971-4-335 5022 January/February 2009 cadalyst www.cadalyst.com 17 http://www.cadalyst.com/kw http://www.omnixcae.ae http://www.omnixcae.ae http://www.cadalyst.com
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