MDTopX: Digital Terrain Models

Digi21.net presents the new version of MDTop: MDTopX.

This version has got a new user interface that will help the execution of commands and tools. Significantly it improves the speed of displaying the data, increasing the ability to treat large volumes of data. Furthermore, it has integrated on the same interface VirtuaLand program, which will have all tools in the same environment.

One of the important improvements contained in this release is the inclusion of a module to process files from laser devices: LiDAR and Laser-Scan. This module includes new tools for the treatment and editing data in a quick and easy way.

The data processing tools allow laser data classification LiDAR automatically. Filters are used to look for points classification depending on the geometry, using additional parameters such as intensity or color extracted from aerial images.

This module provides new tools for Delaunay triangulation and three-dimensional triangulation (collection of Delaunay tetrahedra), which will generate digital models from laser data in a fast way.

Manual editing tools are included through profiles or by surfaces that will help user in order to classify the data.

In MDTopX new commands are included for viewing digital models: cells, points, hypsometric tints or shading can be selected for analysis of the data. The display can be improved by editing lighting and material parameters.

MDTopX allows viewing of raster images with great speed, including tools for georeferencing images.

The images generated by the program or registered with other devices can be used to improve visualization of digital models allowing a better analysis of the digital models. Among the new tools, a tool to generate videos is included, using paths and flight parameters.

As in previous versions, MDTopX allows automatic digital ground model generation with diverse applications.

It also has tools for road drawing and generating of profiles, cross sections, volumes, etc.

It generates digital models with no data point limits using for its composition Delaunay's algorithm. It respects the breaklines in a fast, efficient way.

The input and output data files can be DIGI (BIN), AutoCAD (DXF), MicroStation (DGN), ESRI Shape, TopCal or ASCII files. The digital models' applications include the following:

• Automatic generation/production of contours, with intervals, labels and volumes to choose from.
• Volume computation.
• Profile computation.
• Projection of cartography over DTM.
• Check of altimetry of DTM.
• Generation of grids.
• Generation of hypsometric tints maps.
• Generation of shading map.

Among the applications for roads, MDTopX includes:

• Interactive editing tools for horizontal and vertical alignments
• Tools for calculating circular elements and spirals
• Tools for editing alignments, such as copy, move, intersect, and so on
• Tools for calculating roundabouts
• Import/export tools
• Tools for editing cross sections
• Tools for editing superelevations
• Calculation of the digital model with the road project
• Generation of profiles
• Calculation of volumes