Microstation - app for point clouds

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MarcinL
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Microstation - app for point clouds

Post by MarcinL »

Hi guys,
Does anybody have any experience with writting applications for MicrostationV8i, which are using point clouds data?
I would like build app, which allow us to create simple geometry (such as oval sections), automatically, basing on the point clouds.
What way will be the best for this task? MVBA or maybe VB with .NET?
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Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

Post by jcoco3 »

I wish I could help, but unfortunately I don't know very much about using the MVBA or VB in Microstation. That being said I am very interested in your results, and would be willing to test anything you come up with :D

Are you looking for a batch process approach or section at a time?

You might also want to look into Bentley Descartes and possibly build a tool to work in conjunction with some of it's tools. I think the drape element and append template(within model by section) tools are at least good too look at to see Bentley's approach and they may already be the solution you are looking for.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UaZwRa7xeo
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Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

Post by Ben fredericque »

Hi,
Preferred languages are C and c++ for performance considerations.

I am quite sure there are some code samples to manipulate point cloud as part of Microstation SDK. (Dedicated installer available on Bentley SELECT).

You can ask specific questions on this Bentley forum
http://communities.bentley.com/products ... 94008.aspx

Bentley also provides a framework to support developpers using Microstation as plateform, it is referred as Bentley Developper Network. It is not free but is worth consideration for serious developments.

I will check on Monday for code samples.

Hth
Ben
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Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

Post by MarcinL »

jcoco3 wrote:I wish I could help, but unfortunately I don't know very much about using the MVBA or VB in Microstation. That being said I am very interested in your results, and would be willing to test anything you come up with :D

Are you looking for a batch process approach or section at a time?

You might also want to look into Bentley Descartes and possibly build a tool to work in conjunction with some of it's tools. I think the drape element and append template(within model by section) tools are at least good too look at to see Bentley's approach and they may already be the solution you are looking for.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UaZwRa7xeo
Thanks for the answer, and link. I was using this function in descartes to creating 3d plans. It work well. By the way, we can achive the same effect with Microstation, moving clip volume, and copy sections. I am using this tehnic for creating 3d models (with future solids), where I need a lot of sections ex. in tunnels.
But it isn't what I need. I want to done this process automatically.
For example with pipe (or circle tunnel), I want to draw approximate axis of this, determine distance between secitions, and algorithm will automaticly drawing circles in .dgn file, basing on calculated circle radius, and coordinates of circle center.
Ben fredericque wrote:Hi,
Preferred languages are C and c++ for performance considerations.

I am quite sure there are some code samples to manipulate point cloud as part of Microstation SDK. (Dedicated installer available on Bentley SELECT).

You can ask specific questions on this Bentley forum
http://communities.bentley.com/products ... 94008.aspx

Bentley also provides a framework to support developpers using Microstation as plateform, it is referred as Bentley Developper Network. It is not free but is worth consideration for serious developments.

I will check on Monday for code samples.

Hth
Ben
Unfortunetly, I am student yet, so I don't want to pay for any help in this project.
I am not programmer, but land surveyor, so I haven't experience and knowledge with C Languages and I am looking for simplest way to make app. As I know MVBA is the simplest way to create code. I needen't connect any library, and here is good book Learning Microstation VBA, which contatin a lot of things which I need.
But I wonder, how MVBA will work with huge matrixes (or Arrays), which I need to the method of least squares?
What is the biggest dimension of matrix, I can create?
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Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

Post by jcoco3 »

We used to used Microstation in the same manor until we found the model by section functionality that Descartes offers. If you are modeling tunnels frequently then it is worth the purchase. The time we have save has been incredible, and paid for itself in the first project we used it on.

Are the sections you want to draw symmetrical or irregular? How long is the tunnel and how often are your sections? Descartes's model by section with automatically fitted templates(you draw the first one) still seems to be the best fit for what you are doing. If your tunnel geometry is simple then the modeling would go really fast once you have it setup. Maybe you have too many tunnels, or an extremely long tunnel? If you need your section to be simple circle instead of a spline, that would work too. If your tunnel makes many turns and changes elevations, then it is a good idea to draw one spline that roughly follows the tunnel to use as a path for the model by section tool. It is not fully automatic, but it can be really fast by comparison to cutting individual sections. We have modeled some long beams, that were simple as left click, right click, repeat and Descartes did all the work. Just be clear this is part of what I am talking about:
http://youtu.be/7UaZwRa7xeo?t=3m16s
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Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

Post by MarcinL »

    I really agree with you, Jonathan. Descartes is powerfull tool for long objects, with simple geometry. I think that it's reaaly hard to improve efficency of this software.
    But as we know, we must fitted every one section manually, by moving every section to good position (I am talking now, about simple circular section, where shape of section is the same in every place), or I am wrong?
    The problem what I want to solve isn't connected with projects in my job, tunells are no so often, rather pipes.
    As I wrote I am student yet, and I want to dispel my curiosity, is it possible to making this process automatically, rather than make tool using in commercial projects.
    And I am agree with you that descartes is really good, for commercial projects, where you must be sure that model is perfectly fitted with point clouds.
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    Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

    Post by Oatfedgoat »

    So funny that this topic came up.
    I was thinking a few days ago if it would be possible to revise the drape line tool from Descartes such that it didn't only draw top down.
    Could it be possible to change the origin such that it is somewhere in the centre of a tunnel and looks out radially from that centre until it finds a point to drape against, thus producing a tunnel profile.
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    Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

    Post by DanCutler »

    the trouble with auto-generating geometry from point clouds is controlling the output.
    how many vertices do you have? how many do you want?
    for me, I want as few as possible, and i'd also like them to be consistent through each section so i can perform a loft and get a lovely surface or solid at the end..

    ..the magic button doesn't exist yet (but i would be happy if someone can make one!), for now what we offer is semi-magic buttons; the idea being that you can produce accurate, light-weight, efficient, sections with minimal input form the operator.

    skip to 1:00 -
    [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6VJkQHpETc[/youtube]
    MarcinL
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    Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

    Post by MarcinL »

    Finding lines by intesity look preety good.
    I don't understand what is the purpose of second function shows on view. Is there created brakeline through all points in the section?
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    Re: Microstation - app for point clouds

    Post by DanCutler »

    the 2nd function - around 25s?
    this is the Visual Explorer, it's an interesting tool which highlights points around the cursor, the purpose being that you can see which point your cursor is snapping on, is it the lamppost in the foreground or the road in the background? is it the edge of the kerb or some random point in space?

    Visual Explorer shows this on screen by recolouring the points. as with most things in MicroStation-land it is highly customisable, you can change its shape, size, colour, how big the points are, etc, etc. in this case it is a long thin red line which has been oriented perpendicular to the road so you can easily see where the breaklines are. Very useful if your data has no intensity or RGB for example.
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