3D Point Cloud 's possible applications are almost endless. When you think of lidar , your mind will naturally float onto an application of self-driving car navigation or geospatial surveys. In fact, navigation and lidar data can be used in a variety of applications, including video game development.
When a new technology, such as lidar, is first launched on the market, many factors affect its price. Initially, unit cost may be high to ensure the recovery of R&D costs. However, as the technology ages and manufacturers innovate and launch new versions, prices will always drop.
As this process occurs, it brings technology to a wider audience, adding to the number of new and innovative use cases.
point cloud can be used in many broad and diverse applications. Self-driving car developers can use point clouds to help detect and avoid objects, while geospatial surveyors can use point clouds to determine how fast roads deteriorate over time or monitor coastal erosion.
However, these are some of the more common use cases. But how do navigation data be used in applications such as video game development? Let's first look at how navigation data works with lidar.
LiDAR and Inertial Navigation
To create a 3D point cloud, users must combine the location, navigation and time measurements from the inertial navigation system (INS) with the original LiDAR data. It is impossible to create a point cloud without accurate INS data. This is because the lidar sensor needs to know its position in space and time and its orientation.
To avoid complex software engineering work, you can use simple and easy-to-use software such as OxTS Georeferencer to georeferencer to georeferencer to georeferenced lidar data. After georeferenced is completed, OxTS Georeferencer will create a PCAP file that users can view in many point cloud viewer software applications.
Enter the drone area
As lidar technology becomes more accessible, new and creative methods of using point clouds are emerging. OxTS partner Dronezone is such a company that is looking for new uses for lidar.
Dronezone Manufacturing and renting professional drones (UAV). They build drone payloads using Velodyne VLP-16 lidar sensors and OxTS INS devices for sale or lease to customers.
Dronezone's customers have used the payload for various projects. One person uses payload to scan the aging railway bridge to look for possible weaknesses and deteriorate over time. In addition to geospatial mapping projects, Dronezone has also found an increasing need to cater to niche applications.
Dronezone conducted a survey on the Transylvania track track for video game developer Kunos Simulazioni, which released the racing simulator "Assetto Corsa". The company wants to get an accurate digital representation of the orbital profile. The results you can see in the videos and screenshots are particularly impressive.
Racing Simulator
For this project, Dronezone got rid of traditional drone-based surveying and mapping. To accurately measure tracks, the company leverages the flexibility of its drone payload to repurpose the hardware for cars. uses many ready-made solutions, which is impossible. This setting enables Dronezone to complete multi-lap tracks and create high-density point clouds.
"Using different components to build drone payloads means Dronezone can reuse the hardware and build different settings suitable for use on cars," said Paris Austin, head of new product technology at OxTS. "It is this flexibility that enables Dronezone to serve a variety of applications."
To further improve the results, Dronezone uses the Boresight Calibration function in OxTS Georeferencer to calibrate the coordinate system of the lidar sensor and INS. This process involves a brief survey of two backreflective targets, improving clarity of the final result and eliminating blur and diplopia.
