At Lands End

How to export models from Google Warehouse to AIM

In order to enrich our AIM models we can use different sources. One of them is the Google warehouse where thousands of nice models are waiting to be used. As always there are some things to look at first when pushing models from format to format.

So here is a nice hint from my colleague Pierre-Nicolas, about configuring 3DS max design in order to keep the textures in the right place in SKP models that you convert with 3DSMaxDesign.

First, visit the Warehouse (http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/) and download the desired model. Make sure to choose the .skp format.

 

Open 3ds Max Design and choose “Custom UI and default switcher…“from the “Customize” menu item.

 
The tools options should be set to DesignVIZ. If your software is set to another value, select DesignVIZ. You would have to restart 3ds Max in order the changes are taken into account.

 

 Import the model now in the scene and choose following settings when asked.

 

 Important is to make sure that the last box is unchecked.

 

The model appears nicely in 3ds Max and we can export it now to FBX:

Make sure you enable “Embed Media”!

 

Now we can drag and drop it into our AIM scene. Via “Interactive placement” you are able to put it wherever you need it to bee.

 

Another option for using models from external sources are focused on reusable objects like city furniture, such as cars, lights, trees, etc. and not unique building models like in this demo case above.

Let’s assume you want to use a model more often, it would make sense to put it into the local library of AIM.

Therefore open the Style Editor. Search for the 3D Model tab and select the correct folder. Under “Style Editing” in the lower part of the Style Palette Dialog box hit the green “+” and create a new model style.

DoubleClick opens the style settings and here you are able to load the (in our case today) FBX model. Once it is loaded you can see it in the preview.

 

Now you are able to drag and drop this style onto existing models or use it within the drawing tool for your own project proposal.

Have a good week!

 

Just a little tip: Infrastructure Modeler 2012 shortcut keys

Master of the obvious, I am not!

This week I gave a beginner class at Autodesk University 2011. I was reminded once again of how a product expert, like <ahem> me, can forget about some very obvious tips and tricks that can quickly help a beginner ramp up on the learning curve of a new tool.

One of the most obvious items is that there are some highly useful hotkeys when you are navigating around Infrastructure Modeler 2012 and when you are placing objects in scene.

Here are the most common hotkeys that I find myself using:

Navigation and editing HOME – Returns you to the overview position of your model Page Up/Page Down – rotate camera up or down Arrow Keys – move camera A or Z key – change elevation of camera up or down ALT-Z – zoom to selected objects DOUBLE-LEFT-CLICK – completes polyline or polygon operations (select, sketch) ALT- LEFT-CLICK – on a polyline or polygon adds a vertex SHIFT-LEFT-CLICK – on a polyline or polygon vertex removes the vertex CTRL-LEFT-CLICK on an unselected asset – adds assets to a selection ESC – cancels most editing and selection actions SHIFT-MOUSE-WHEEL – change model elevation CTRL-MOUSE-WHEEL – scale model up or down ALT-MOUSE-WHEEL – rotate model DOUBLE-LEFT-CLICK – places asset in scene DEL - The delete key will delete selected objects from the scene Interactively placing a 3D model in scene SHIFT-MOUSE-WHEEL – change model elevation CTRL-MOUSE-WHEEL – scale model up or down ALT-MOUSE-WHEEL – rotate model DOUBLE-LEFT-CLICK – places the asset in the scene (chooses the insert coordinates)

Thanks to everyone who joined us at AU2011!

Infrastructure Modeler: One tooltip to rule them all...

Well, it's not really that serious, but we can do some pretty cool things with tooltips in Infrastructure Modeler, if you haven't tried it yet.

One of the principles behind our ability to hyperlink to data or to display dynamic information in tooltips was that we had a ton of customer feedback that said we would need to give customers the ability to access enterprise data to generate reports and visuals.  For our first release of Infrastructure Modeler, this boiled down to giving access to a really nice scripting engine and then really pushing the limits on tooltips within a desktop product.

Take a look at the followign example:

<tooltip>

<forcewebview>true</forcewebview>

<style>

background-color: white;

max-width:400;

max-height:350;

border-color:black;

border-width:1;

border-style:solid

</style>

</tooltip>

<html>

<body>

<p><b>Name: %NAME%</b></p>

<p>Description: %DESCRIPTION%</p>

<p>Facility manager: %USER_DATA%</p>

<img src="http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?chxr=0,0,400&chxt=y&chbh=a&chs=200x200&cht=bvs&chco=AA0033,FFCC33&chds=0,200,0,200&chd=t:58.324,78.107,24.271,50.659,62.36|104.102,53.638,45.076,98.442,84.002&chma=|5&chtt=Business+Unit+Expenditures" width="200" height="200" alt="Business Unit Expenditures" />

<img src='http://bit.ly/lzXEoB' width='128' height='128'/>

</body>

</html>

Plug that into the 'tooltip' field on a building object in Infrastructure Modeler, then make sure Tooltips are visible in the View menu, and hold your mouse over the building in the scene.

You should see something like this:

Yep... that's two different Google Image Chart images embedded in the tooltip (one is masked with a bit.ly call).

If the HTML-like code above is too complex, then try a basic webpage.  Here's all I entered to get the next image:

    http://atlandsend.typepad.com

And if you have an enterprise portal with a simple RESTful web interface, you can even try calls like this call I made to the Google AJAX search service using the %ID% of the building:

    http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/services/search/web?v=1.0&q=%ID%

In this case, the building ID is 287 and the service returned a bunch of results about Interstate 287... not that helpful here, but there's a ton of power in this little request.

Happy tooltipping!

Adding custom classes and attributes to Infrastructure Modeler 2012

As we get the word out there about Autodesk Infrastructure Modeler 2012, we'll also be doing our best to post some tips and tricks on how to use it. However, we're going to be experimenting with a new work flow that has been enabled through our new in-product WIKIHelp system.

Instead of posting to this blog and then separately posting to the WIKIHelp (or worse, hoping that someone else posts to the WIKIHelp), we're going to start adding Tips and Tricks, scripts, and more into the help documents directly.  Since their available to anyone online, that means that you'll be able to get consistent information all in one place.

For this week's contribution, follow this link to see the Infrastructure Modeler help on adding attributes and classes (asset types) to your Infrastructure Modeler model.

Also, let us know if this pattern works for you!  Eventually, the WIKIHelp should be much more extensive and a better single source of truth.

If you have some topics to suggest, send them in!

Altering Your Project Galileo Road Styles III

In addition to the last blog i would like to talk about bridge and tunnel styles.

Once a road style is selected for editing you may enter the “Street Type” for this style to be set. Depending on the three options apart from roadways a specific box appears in the upper right corner of the Style Editor to select bridge & tunnel.

 
The roadway has been described already. Now we want to take a quick look at the other two options.

Starting with the Bridges, you can see some Bridge related settings. The “Bottom Surface Category”, “Outer Surface Category” and the “Pylon Surface Category” are materials to be defined in the “Default Material Group” (see Older Post).

 
The “Bottom Surface” describes the surface from underneath the bridge; “Outer Surface” covers the vertical outer side walls and the “Pylon Surface” maps a material to all of the pylons of the bridge.

The “Thickness” sets the meters between the road surface and the bottom of the bridge body.

ACTION: Enter some higher and lower values and check the preview in the style editor.

Last but not least you may specify the pylon size and the spacing between them. Check the values and position and size the pylons as you think the look best.

Road Styles can be designed as brides as well as tunnels. Even the boulevard style can be turned into a tunnel but I doubt that palm trees in a tunnel make sense, but you never know what sustainable design may produce.

 

The “Tunnel Settings” provide four categories to texture the tunnel cube. A material can be set for the top celling (Top Surface Category). This is important when a tunnel starts outside a terrain you would want to texture the top cover of the tunnel.

The bottom celling is textured under “Bottom Surface Category”, which you actually see in the tunnel.

“Outer and Inner Surface Category” describe the inner and outer walls of the tunnel cube.

The “Height” defines the distance from the Roadway (or lowest track) up to the top surface and the “Wall Thickness” is the depth of the tunnel walls including the tunnel cover.

Have a good one!

Galileo: GIS for non-GIS users 2

(Now fixed for Chrome, Firefox, and IE8.... does not work in IE7 or below...)

After answering some questions that came in from some non-GIS Galileo trial users, I started thiniking about basic gaps in the Galileo workflow for users without access to huge amounts of GIS data.

One of the basic workflows that many users would like to do is:

1. Create a new empty model in Galileo with a dummy terrain representing the place on the Earth where their project will take place
2. Texture the terrain with a Google Maps image
3. Add in some 3D model content and start sketching roads, buidlings, trees, and other features to end up with something like this:

We don't have any Google Maps integration in Galileo, however, I was able to create a test tool that allows you to make some of this workflow happen with a little hopping between your browser, a text editor, and Project Galileo.

Try this

1. Click to open the demonstration At Lands End AOI Generator (CLICK HERE).

2. Zoom into an area on the map.

3. Click to pick one corner of the desired area.

4. Click to pick the 2nd corner of the desired area (box must be less than 1 degree or about 100 mi. in height and width).  The box should turn green.

5. Click "Calculate terrain", click once in the terrain textbox, copy and paste in a text browser then Save as an .ASC file.

I see this:

6. Click "Calculate worldfile", click once in the worldfile textbox, copy and paste in a text browser then Save as an .TFW file.

7. Make a screencapture of the Google Map image and save as a TIF file with the same name as the TFW file.  Make sure that you are complying with the Google TOS for data when you use your screen capture.

Here's my screen capture:

8. Launch Project Galileo

9. Click the link to create a new city.  

10. In the new city dialog, click the "Define city extent" checkbox. 

11. Click the "Load Extent from File" button and navigate to the .ASC file you created.

Be sure to use the Coordinate System LL84, when you use the saved files in Project Galileo.  I see this:

12. IMPORTANT: After the empty city comes up, push F5.

You should see a blank terrain created.  I get this:

13. File-->Import from file your TIF as a terrain texture not a terrain surface.  I see this:

It's not going to be super pretty, but it'll work from a distance.

14. At this point, for fun, I zoomed way in to try to take a screen cap of a map image that would look a bit better.  I'll use the initial terrain for context, but I want to work close up on a little project.  I zoomed in, then repeated steps 6 and 13.  Here's what I see:

15. From there, I sketched some buildings on top of existing images in the aerial, dropped in an FBX of a pharmacy, sketched some trees, and improved the scene a bit.

Clearly, this workflow is a hack that works well for small areas (especially in flat places like Florida), but hopefully it gives you some idea for what can be done with a little bit of basic information available on the web and some elbow grease.

Download LandsEndTerrainToolExample files by clicking on this link.

Let us know how it goes!

(Some notes from Chris:

Coordinate system:  I know that the real coordinate system for Google Maps images is WGS84.PseudoMercator... but there is a bug in Galileo that prevents that from working.  LL84 is close enough for now.

ASC as a true terrain: It should be possible to use the ASC as a true terrain file, not just as an extent... but there's another bug in Galileo that makes this not look so pretty.  We're working on this.

Enjoy!)

 

Galileo: Questions from Architects

In chats with Jason Grant and a few other architects, we've heard consistent questions that suggest that Project Galileo presents some concepts and tools that are unfamiliar to many architects.  Here are some preliminary answers to a few of the most common questions that we seem to be getting:

Q: What is a shapefile and where do I get one?

A: A shapefile is a GIS file that started out as a proprietary format but which gradually became a defacto standard in the GIS industry.  Think of a shapefile as a simple table that contains one column with a 2D graphic object and an arbitrary number of additional columns containing user-defined attributes that correspond to the shape.  Each piece of data, or feature, in a shapefile is represented by one row or record in the table such that the record contains one graphic and the associated attributes.  Shapefiles can be made by many types of GIS software, including AutoCAD Map 3D.  Galileo can consume shapefiles containing points, polylines, or polygons and magically grow them into trees, rail lines, and buildings, for example.

(Note that this is a logical description of the shapefile.  A full description of what is in a shapefile can be found in numerous sources online.)

Q: Where would a database file come from and how would it be used?

A: In the context of Galileo, a "database" typically refers to some kind of file or intranet-based source of data in a relational GIS structure.  As described in the shapefile question above, this structure typically associates 2D graphics with attributes.  GIS data in this format can be used for overlaying on terrain as "Coverages", buildings, roads, rail, city furniture, trees, water, and barriers.  Database access is done through the open source Feature Data Objects (FDO) technology and the types of databases and database files that can be accessed is consistent with current releases of other Autodesk products that use FDO.

Q: How does a terrain surface file work with an image file and where would I find it?

A: There are many types of terrain surface files that may be used in Project Galileo.  These files may be found in both vector and raster (image) formats.  After a terrain file is brought into Project Galileo.  There is a huge diversity of sources for terrain data and imagery, described reasonably well on wikipedia.  The diversity in formats and resolution can be dizzying for GIS and non-GIS professionals alike.  For really large areas, the US government publishes US and some world data online at their EarthExplorer site.  Galileo uses an open source library for terrain called GDAL and should support most of the formats found on the GDAL raster formats site. 

Q: How would a terrain texture file be used?

A:  Terrain textures are most commonly aerial or satellite photographs of the ground and may be overlaid on a terrain to make the ground look more real.  In the images from VTN Las Vegas on the Galileo Gallery, you can see that Keith Warren and his team have used aerial imagery to show streets, trees and other ground features in their models.

Typically terrain source files have intrinsic georeferencing.  That is, the file contains some information that tells the software where on the globe it belongs.  That is necessary because when you add other information, such as an aerial photo or a georeferenced building created in an Autodesk product, then the software can put the data together correctly.  Image files usually do not have georeferencing inside the file.  Instead for a TIF file, for example, you may find a TFW file next to it that looks like this:

0.125000

0.000000

0.000000

-0.125000

331473.140900

7394394.272800

While that is pretty meaningless to the human reader, this file defines the extent of the imagery data and where on the earth it belongs.  If you have obtained terrain and imagery from a known source, such as your local city, then they typically will provide the 'world files' as these are called.

        Q: Is a TIFF terrain the same thing as a TIFF image in Photoshop?

A: The GeoTIFF format that can be used for a terrain file is related to the TIFF that is thought of as an image file, however it contains additional information that encodes elevation information.  While a GeoTIFF can be used as a terrain texture, a TIFF that is generated in Photoshop or another non-geospatial raster image editing application cannot be used as a terrain.  The RemoteSensing.org site has some great information on GeoTIFFs. 

Q: Which is the most efficient file format to import from for an Architect? (FBX, OBJ…)  

A: There is no simple answer to this question today, unfortunately.  FBX is a heterogeneous format that can differ subtly from implementation to implementation.  OBJ tends to be very large.  For simple models, we have had success with OBJ.  For Revit models, we have had more success with FBX exported from 2011 Revit and LandXplorer, but we're working on consistency issues.

We'll hopefully have more tips on this soon.

Q: What is LandXML data and where does it come from?

A: LandXML is an open standard for exchanging civil drafting information for terrain surfaces and other terrain-related objects.  We currently use LandXML as the exchange format to receive information in Project Galileo from AutoCAD Civil 3D.  If you are working on a project that includes some recently graded sites or cuts for road ways or utilities trenches, then it's possible that the civil engineer you work with can provide exports from their model in LandXML format.

Q: What are coordinate systems and which should be used?

Short A: You're an architect with no interest in GIS concepts.  You simply want to use some cool data like terrains, imagery, building footprints, streets, and trees to make a really cool context for a detailed project you are working with.  My advice... work with someone familiar with GIS to get you a package of the data you need which should all come with the right 'world files' so that Galileo recognizes them and you can ignore the need to set the coordinate system.  And make sure that they tell you what coordinate system it was.

Warning: It may cost you.  Good data is rarely free.

Another warning: If you don't know the right coordinate system for some GIS data you found and you just pick one, data import may fail.  Not all coordinate systems are created equal.  Some are quite a bit more equal than others.

Long A: Everything on the earth has a location or coordinate.  We collect those locations in both 2D (latitude and longitude or X and Y) and 3D (add altitude or Z).  You, as a user, want to take real world objects with real location information and and use them in a 2D or 3D scene, preserving their exact location, orientation, and shape.  But how do I take a civil terrain, a 3D model, a terrain file, and a bunch of 2D tree locations and get them to match up to be in the right place in the scene?

The only way to do this is if I know the right coordinate system and datum for the objects.  A coordinate system can be thought of as the units and location of the XYZ origin axis for the scene.  Different coordinate systems are used to optimize accuracy in shape, distance, and position on the earth depending on the area of the project that you care about. A datum is essentially a model of the curvature of the earth.  Different data are created using different curvature models, such as models that are developed at different times or models that are developed to maximize accuracy for different parts of the globe. 

In most cases, you'll likely be working with some kind of local coordinate system that best represents the region where you are working. If your local government provides data for free online, they will typically advertise the coordinate system in which they stored their data.  The Marin County data repository posts this statement:

 All GIS data are in California State Plane coordinates, NAD83, HARN in US Survey feet.

That way, if for some reason a file that I get from MarinMap.org doesn't open with the coordinate system predefined, I can search through the coordinate system picker and find the correct entry.  Galileo attempts to remember the last used system to make it easier to find the next time.

If you're really curious, there's a ton of literature out there on coordinate systems, projections, and datums.  You can start with wikipedia and procrastinate successfully for several days by following some simple Google searches.

I recognize that some of these answers don't go far enough, but there are several PhD's worth of questions here.  As we discover specific scenarios that can help you understand some of these concepts, we'll try to share them on the blog.

Galileo visual tips and tricks: full screen, wireframe, and more

Jason Grant over at the Adaptive Practice blog wrote an interesting entry about Project Galileo and Showcase that reminded me that many of our users are not realizing a couple of visual tricks in Project Galileo that are pretty easy to employ.  Let's take a quick look at how to make presentations and graphics look a little more interesting in Galileo.

Full screen mode

Push F11. Yep.  That's it.  Full screen.  Kind of cool, no?  To get out of full screen, push F11 again.

Errors

Sometimes you try something in the tech preview and nothing happens.  Try opening up the Error log (ALT+9) window and seeing if there are any errors.  If it looks like big problems, send them to landxplorersupport@autodesk.com.

Ambient occlusion, anti-aliasing, and wireframe

I've seen a ton of cool screenshots come in and invariably I notice that there is one thing missing... the user didn't notice that we have some easy techniques to make the scene a little prettier. Check out the view menu.  In there, you'll see that you have access to turn on Antialiasing and Ambient Occlusion, as well as to toggle wire frame and full screen modes:

WARNING: Using the highest settings of AA and AO may slow down Galileo frame rate and consume a lot of system processing.  Navigation definitely may be impacted, especially for large projects.

NOTE: AO may be a little ugly with some imported imagery textures.

Here's a shot of Tiny Town with no effects turned on:

 

Here's one with wire frame:

Here's a shot with Antialiasing turned on:

Here's a shot with Antialiasing and Ambient Occlusion on:

Now here's all three:

Cool, huh?

Antialiasing is not that processor intensive and can make full screen visualization look a whole lot better.

Enjoy!

LandXplorer 2011 Courseware are available!

Hi there,

check out the new LandXplorer courseware including a whole bunch of data, now!

The training material will teach you how to exploit the full benefits of displaying, creating, editing, and publishing 2D and 3D geospatial data using Autodesk® LandXplorer™ Studio Professional.

As you progress through each exercise you will gain a better understanding of how Autodesk® LandXplorer™ Studio Professional can be used not only to build aesthetically pleasing 3D city models and 3D landscape models but how to create value-added information and products for end-users and stakeholders.

The training material supplied is intended for use with Autodesk® LandXplorer™ Studio Professional 2011 and introduces new functions which were not available in prior versions of Autodesk® LandXplorer™ Studio Professional. The focus for the 2011 release has been put especially on productivity and connectivity with other Autodesk® products through Autodesk® FDO technology and FBX support and more intuitive dialogs for data import and manipulation.

ftp.3dgeo.de/3dgeo/customers/geodata

geodata / Cp69kE5w

Have Fun & Enjoy.

ToW LDX2011/Galileo - Import/Export formats

When using a tool for creating 3D city models you will end up in many different formats which can contain information for you model. Today I want to give you a simplistic overview on what can be inserted in and exported from LandXplorer Studio Professional 2011.

This topic is also interesting to those of you who are playing around with the new Project Galileo. Since Galileo is a technlogical preview it does not contain as much capability like LandXplorer has today yet, but looking at them as partner tools you may encounter some nice workflows.

As you might know Galileo isn’t yet able to import 3D shape files. So the workaround would be:

• Open LDX 2011 and load your 3D shp file and texture it as you want
• Export the city model to fbx from LDX 2011 (I exported 1730 buildings at once)
• Open Project Galileo and insert the newly created fbx city model.
• Enjoy...

Here is an overview on the formats being able to bring in and out of LDX 2011:

Download TS_Import_Export_Workflow