We have noticed a pattern where more and more AEC clients ask us a very similar question: how do we bring all the data we collect in the field into a single place so that we can view it all together and make better decisions? If you are familiar with this question, you may have been asking it yourself or your management team may have asked it from you.
AEC companies are now collecting vast amounts of information from many different sources, and they need workflows and strategies to house the data and visualize it in a way that their stakeholders can understand it. Esri’s technology has long been focused on empowering our users to work with many different data layers, analyze them and then make more informed decisions. Therefore, we have a variety of workflows to help you take your data, process it and visualize it in either a desktop or web environment.
When data from various sources such as Lidar point clouds, drone imagery, ground imagery, and 360° panorama images are brought together, it creates a comprehensive view of the project. This holistic picture allows stakeholders to see the full context and interrelationships between different data sets, leading to more accurate and effective decision-making.
For example, integrating Lidar data with drone imagery can provide both detailed elevation information and high-resolution visual context, which can be crucial for planning and monitoring construction projects. Similarly, combining ground imagery with 360° panorama images can offer a complete view of the site, helping to identify potential issues that might not be visible from a single data source
But which workflow is suitable for the data being collected in the field by AEC companies?
This post will provide an overview of the different data sources being collected and then point you to resources where you can learn how to make use of them with the different tools Esri offers.
Let’s start with the data sources Esri currently supports:
- Lidar point clouds
- Drone Imagery
- 2D orthomosaics and elevation surfaces (DSM/DTM)
- 3D point clouds and textured meshes
- Inspection images
- Video
- Ground Imagery taken from mobile devices using Survey123 and/or Field Maps
- 360° panorama images taken from drones or on the ground
The list above will probably grow over time and if you have additional data sources please reach out and we will make sure they are supported in future versions.
Now that we have identified the data sources, let’s dive into each one to learn how to bring them into the Esri technology stack:
1. Lidar point clouds – ground based
AEC companies are collecting vast amounts of Lidar data in their projects, and they are mostly from ground-based laser scanners. The raw data is stored in a proprietary format and requires software from the laser scanner manufacturer to convert it into a common format (LAS or LAZ). Most of these point clouds are large and usually split into multiple files for a single area due to their size. Therefore, it is recommended to manage them using a LAS dataset. This data format references the storage location of the point clouds and has tools to optimize their performance when working in ArcGIS Pro. With a LAS dataset you can now visualize all your point clouds together and bring in other data layers to help with your analysis. In some cases, you will want to make your data accessible to other stakeholders using a web browser – follow this link to learn more on how to get this done with Esri tools.
2. Lidar point clouds – aerial based
Esri has curated best practices for working aerial Lidar data which you can review here. This documentation includes how to prepare your data, manage it, and derive elevation surfaces that are mostly needed for different construction workflows. Esri also now supports specialized sensors that collect Lidar and imagery together with ArcGIS Reality Studio. Read the documentation here if you are working with these sensors and need to process them together.
3. Drone Imagery
Images collected by drones are useful in a variety of different ways for AEC companies. The source imagery can be used in workflows as separate images but can also be processed using Drone2Map, Site Scan or ArcGIS Reality to create:
- 2D orthomosaics
- Elevation surfaces (DSM/DTM)
- 3D point clouds (like Lidar points clouds)
- 3D textured meshes
All the above outputs can be brought into ArcGIS Pro or ArcGIS Online in different formats:
ArcGIS Pro
- Mosaic Datasets – for 2D orthomosaics and elevation surfaces
- LAS datasets – for 3D point clouds
- Point Cloud Scene Layer Packages – for 3D textured meshes
ArcGIS Online
- Image Services – for 2D orthomosaics and elevation surfaces
- Scene Layers – for 3D point clouds and 3D textured meshes
For visualizing separate images and also 360 panoramic images, Esri has a data format called Oriented Imagery layers that can reference imagery taken from direction and bring it into ArcGIS Pro or ArcGIS Online. For videos, Esri has a separate ArcGIS Pro tool called FMV analyst which helps you work with this type of data and extract information from it.
4. Ground Imagery taken from mobile devices using ArcGIS field apps
ArcGIS QuickCapture
Collecting inspection images with ArcGIS QuickCapture is the easiest and quickest way to bring in imagery into the Esri system. This intuitive mobile app can be configured to collect basic information on your assets while simultaneously capturing an image that has all the necessary metadata for Oriented Imagery layers. Esri has a tutorial that goes through the steps needed to configure this app for an inspection workflow and then shows the images in a web app.
Survey123 / Field Maps
This mobile app gives you a variety of ways to collect your data and includes the option to add an image. The results are stored in a feature class that has the images as attachments, and these can be displayed in pop-ups when brought into a web app. Another option is to use the Attachment Viewer widget inside of a web app for an easier way to view and browse through this imagery. In the future, Survey123 will also have the option to convert the images to Oriented Imagery layers, and we will provide an update when this is available.
With these resources at hand, we hope that you can now better understand the different workflows you will need to implement to ingest your data into a workable solution. A suggested next step is that you explore the use of Esri Dashboards and Web Apps to share your data with other stakeholders to help them understand the status of your work and inform them on the decisions you are making based on it.
Esri also has several partners that can help you integrate the remotely sensed data you collected into your systems and workflows – please reach out to us if you would like to learn more about these offerings.
We hope you have found this post useful and would love to hear your feedback!
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