MODULE 5.
INTRODUCTION TO REALWORKS SURVEY™
Learning Outcomes:
Students should learn the basics of RealWorks Survey (RWS) such as how many
modules RWS includes, RWS environment, opening file, displaying point clouds and
images, performing measurements and registering clouds.
Lecture Contents:
5.1.
Introduction
RealWorks Survey™ is Trimble’s post-processing software for 3D scanning
which includes RealWorks Survey Advanced, RealWorks Survey Standard and
RealWorks Viewer. The software is a very sophisticated tool and this chapter mainly
serves as a brief introduction to RealWorks Survey Advanced. RealWorks Survey
Advanced provides the users with a set of tools for processing 3D point cloud and 2D
images to produce data and information that meet a project’s needs. In addition to some
basic operations and tools such as file management, segmenting, sampling etc., it has
three modules: Registration mode, OfficeSurvey™ mode and Modeling mode.
The Registration module includes a partial loader, cloud-based and target-based
registration and other tools. This module is used to align the scans properly and prepare
data for processing in the other two modules.
The OfficeSurvey module includes many of the features commonly seen in
surveying and land development software such as creating contours, profiles, crosssections, and meshes, calculating area and volume and drawing tools and also features
that are unique to scanning data such as image matching and inspection tools.
The function of the Modeling module is to create 3D model or fit the point clouds
into 3d models. It also provides 3D model modification functions as well as tools to
facilitate the creation or modification of 3D models.
5.2.
RealWorks Survey Environment
The RealWorks Survey environment is not unlike that of the PointScape although
some of the options may be different. It includes these windows: Workspace, 3D view,
List, Properties and Select List. By default, only the first three windows appear when the
program is started.
45
Workspace
Window
Status Bar
Title Bar
Menu Bar
List
window
Tool Bar
3D View
window
Workspace window: This is similar to that in PointScape, but with four tabs in the
window to organize data. The four tabs are Scans, Targets, Models
and Images. The Scans, Targets and Images tabs appear under the
Registration module while the Models and Images tabs appears
under the OfficeSurvey and Modeling modules. When a tab is
clicked, a list of related items will be shown.
List window:
This window is used to display the contents of a group selected in
the Workspace window.
3D View window:
This is similar to that in PointScape. It is used to show 3D point
clouds, images and geometries as well as to perform screen
operations such as picking, zooming, drawing, etc.
46
Select List window:
This is a window that PointScape does not have. By default, it
won’t appear unless invoked. The window lists the items selected
and it looks like this when appearing:
Properties window:
This is a window similar to that in PointScape, showing the
property of a selected objet. Unlike in PointScape, this window
will appear only when invoked.
5.3
Basic Operations
This section shows the steps for some basic operations in RealWorks Survey. It is
by no means a comprehensive discussion.
Open a file
Unlike other programs, the File menu in RealWorks Survey does not have a New
option and it assumes that a data file already exists. It can work with many types of files,
proprietary as well as ascii format. Some of the Trimble files that the program can open
have extensions .ppf, .rwp, .dcp, .jxl, .neu, .soi, and .asc. The program also can open files
created by other 3D scanner vendors.
To open a file:
1. Start RealWorks Survey. Click File in the Menu bar and select Open.
47
2. The open file dialog box appears. In the File Type dropdown list, select the
type of files to be opened.
3.
Navigate to the proper folder, select the file and click Open.
48
4. The file is open as shown.
Displaying and Hiding the Point Cloud
Whether the point cloud is displayed or hidden when the file is open depending on
the status at the time when the file was saved.
To display the point cloud if it is hidden:
1. Click on Display in the Menu bar and select Display Cloud.
49
2. The point cloud is displayed.
To hide the point cloud:
1. Click on Display in the Menu bar and select Hide Cloud.
50
2. The point cloud is hidden.
When there are many scans, the user can choose to display only one or some of
them and hide others.
To display selected scans:
1. First, hide all by clicking on the Menu bar and selecting Hide All.
51
2. The point cloud is hidden. Click on the + sign next to the project name to expand
the project tree.
3. In the project tree, select a station and the scans and images associated with the
station are shown in the List window.
52
4. Scroll down the list, select a scan (SCAN0003 in this case) and click the bulb next
to it to display the scan. The bulb turns from dark to yellow and the scan is
displayed.
Displaying Images
An image can be displayed either in a separate window or as a thumbnail in 3D
View window. To open it in a separate window:
1. In the List window, find the image to be displayed and double-click on it.
53
2. The image is displayed in a separate window.
To display an image as a thumbnail in the 3D View window:
1. Find an image in the List window and click on the bulb next to the name of the
image.
54
2. The bulb turns from dark to yellow and the image is displayed in the 3D View
window. Note that the 3D View window turns into Perspective mode.
Zooming
To zoom in or out on an object:
1. In the 3D View menu, select View Alignment. A submenu drops down. Select
Zoom in or out.
55
2. Draw a fence in the 3D View window by depressing the left mouse button and
dragging.
3. The object is enlarged or reduced based on the selection.
The user can also rotate the wheel on the mouse to zoom in or out on the object.
56
To zoom on a selection:
1. Select an object either in the 3D View window or from the Project tree by clicking
on it. A yellow box appears around the selected object.
2. In the 3D View menu, select View Alignment and then Zoom on Selection in the
submenu.
57
3. The selected object is enlarged.
Panning
To pan the objects, depress the middle mouse button and drag.
Viewing the objects from different angles
RealWorks Survey provides several modes for viewing the objects. The default
method is Examiner mode and Standard Navigation as shown this screenshot. The
Examiner and the Standard Navigation icons were depressed.
58
To view the objects from different angles, simply depress the left mouse button
and drag to the view desired.
The program also provides standard orthographic views as well as options to
rotate the objects about the horizontal and vertical axes.
Measurement Tool
RealWorks Survey provides several tools for measuring distances, positions,
angles and orientation.
To measure the distance between two points:
1. Select Tools from the Menu bar and click on Measurement Tools
59
2. The Measurement Tools bar appears and the cursor becomes a ruler with a sharp
tip. Click on two points to measure the distance.
3. The distance as well as dx, dy, and dz are shown on the object and in a table at the
upper-right corner.
60
4. Press Enter to save the measurement and an object (OBJECT1) is created and listed
in the List window.
5. Click the last icon in the Measurement Tool bar to close it.
The user can use the other icons on the Measurement Tool bar to find an angle
defined by three points, the position of a point and the orientation of a plane if desired
(the steps are skipped).
5.4
Registration Module
When point clouds from different stations are used, they need to be aligned
properly, and registration process serves this purpose. In general, if the stations in a
project were setup properly with known coordinates during field scanning following the
traditional survey flow with backsight/foresight, the point clouds should math properly
when loaded into RealWorks Survey. However, if the station coordinates are unknown,
then registration becomes necessary. The registration module includes a lot of tools and
only a couple of them are illustrated here.
Cloud-Based Registration
Two point clouds can be registered by picking three points in each of them.
Theoretically, these should be three overlapping points in the two clouds. To perform the
registration:
61
1. In the Module drop-down list, select Registration.
2. Click on a project name in Workspace window to select it.
62
3. On the Menu bar, click Registration and select Cloud-Based Registration Tool.
63
The Cloud-Based Registration Tool dialog box appears in the Workspace
window. The 3D View window splits into two. The one on the left (red color) is
the Reference Cloud and the other is the Moving Cloud.
4. In the Reference Cloud drop-down list, select a reference station.
64
5. In the Moving Cloud drop-down list, select a moving station.
6. Click on the 3Points button.
65
7. The cursor becomes a pencil with fine point. Pick three points in the reference
cloud and then three corresponding points in the moving cloud.
8. The two windows become one and registration is done.
66
9. To save the registration, click on Apply or Group in the dialog box.
Target-Based Registration
Stations can also be registered using targets. To register stations automatically, a
station needs at least three targets (two if topographic and level stations are involved).
Here is the automatic matching procedure:
1. In the Module drop-down list, select Registration.
67
2. Click on the project name in the Workspace window and select the stations to be
registered in the List window.
3. On the Menu bar, click Registration and select Target-Based Registration Tool.
68
4. The Target-Based Registration dialog box appears. In the Reference Station
drop-down list select a reference station.
5. Turn the bulb on for the selected reference station to display it in the 3D View
window.
69
6. Click Automatic to automatically match the targets.
7. Click Adjust to register.
8. Click Apply to save the results.
70
Questions:
(Answer these questions, based on the hand-out and lecture)
1. How many modules are there in RealWorks Survey Advanced? List them.
2. What are the three main modes to view the data display?
3. Is there a New option in the file menu?
4. Look at the RWS User Guide and list the types of files that can be loaded into
RWS.
5. How do you perform panning in the 3D View window?
6. How many zoom options are there in the View Alignment window?
7. List the steps to measure the coordinates of a point, the distance between two
points and the angle among three points.
8. List the steps to perform a target-based registration.
9. List the steps to perform a cloud-based registration with three points.
71