Virtual Surveyor unveils time-based design tools for smart drone surveying

Virtual Surveyor has introduced a fresh set of Basic Topographic Design tools in Version 10 of its smart drone surveying software, enabling users to design simple terrain modifications such as graded roads, water ponds and level building surfaces directly on their surveys. To bring these future landscapes to life, Virtual Surveyor has restructured its software offerings around the concept of time.

Historically, Virtual Surveyor has delivered a comprehensive workflow for creating 3D surveys from drone imagery, available through progressive subscription levels: Valley, Ridge, and Peak. The Valley plan serves as a free entry point, while the Ridge and Peak options provide increasingly advanced capabilities to generate 3D survey models from UAV imagery and Lidar data.

In the latest version, a new Mountain plan sits between Ridge and Peak, all centred around the new concept of Time. The Ridge plan supports the creation of surveys for a single point in time using a single drone data set. Mountain introduces Timelines, allowing users to compare multiple surveys taken at different moments or Time Steps. Finally, the Peak plan now integrates Topographic Design tools, enabling the design of future structures, such as roads or buildings, within the survey itself.

New features for engineering surveyors

“The new Topographic Design tools in the Peak plan were developed for engineering surveyors to design rock walls, roads, or water ponds in the existing terrain for excavations, mines, quarries, water management and construction projects,” said Tom Op ‘t Eyndt, Virtual Surveyor CEO. “Designs can be exported in machine model formats for use in software to operate bulldozers, graders and other earth-moving equipment.”

The Peak plan’s Topographic Design functions enable engineering surveyors to plan a variety of new features, creating new Time Steps in the Timeline. The user simply draws the future structure on the baseline UAV-derived orthophoto or elevation model. The software corrects the angle and alignment of the feature to smoothly connect it with upper, lower and surrounding terrain surfaces. The existing cut-and-fill tool calculates the volume of dirt or rock that must be removed or added to achieve the planned design.

With the release of Virtual Surveyor V10, the software introduces several enhancements that work in harmony with its new Topographic Design tools, making it also more easy to draw and refine planned features. For users on the Ridge plan and above, the addition of Drawing Guides offers new precision in design. These guides allow users to place points along lines at regular intervals, such as every 5m or 10m, or to create angles at exact specifications like 45 or 90 degrees. This small but powerful feature helps ensure accurate and efficient creation of design elements.

For those using the Mountain plan, Timelines bring a new dimension to how drone data is organized over time. With this feature, users can compare surveys taken on different dates, helping them visualize and quantify changes in terrain. Both when viewed in map format and as a 3D elevation profile, these comparisons can also involve planned structures drawn using the Topographic Design tools, giving users a comprehensive view of both existing landscapes and future developments.

Additionally, all subscription plans, including the free Valley package, now offer the Walk Mode, a feature that lets users 'walk' through their 3D survey at ground level, offering an immersive view of the terrain from a more realistic perspective. These upgrades collectively enhance the user experience, making it easier to visualize, plan, and track changes to surveyed environments.

“Virtual Surveyor users can employ the Walk Mode to visualize the 3D terrain from past and present drone surveys and then experience future topographies during the design phase,” said Op ‘t Eyndt.