Small Company, Big Ambitions

GIM Interviews Paul Bosman, CEO, CycloMedia Technology BV

CycloMedia Technology BV is a privately owned company based in Waardenburg, The Netherlands. The company exploits an in-house developed camera system for capturing urbanised areas from the road. In January 2006 Paul Bosman became CEO. He talked to us about his many ambitious plans. What are the main products and services offered by CycloMedia? Since the early nineties CycloMedia has built up experience in systematic mapping of urbanised areas on the basis of 360-degree images (so-called cycloramas). These images are captured from the road and at street level using a car as carrier of the camera system, including positioning and... (read more)

2007-02-23 12:00:00

Mobile GIS Systems

Technical and Business Features

Today the computer power of handheld devices is comparable to the desktop computers of a few years back. Together with rapid adoption of the internet, this progress has triggered fitting mobile GIS systems into work processes. Mobile GIS is a means of geo-data collection using GNSS positioning, GIS functionality, wireless connection and mapping, all integrated in one compact device. In tandem with this month’s product survey (page 28), the author gives a detailed outline of the technical and business features of mobile GIS systems. Many work processes start with dispatching digital geo-data from the central GIS to the plotter next... (read more)

2010-12-03 02:58:01

Good Governance, Good Geo-info

Essential Role for GI at all Levels

Where just two decades ago spatial data was mainly carried on paper maps, map and three-dimensional topographic data is now accessible via Google Earth. Where accurate positioning was once the professional pride of highly trained geodesists, we now see such services provided by GPS-based consumer products. This revolution in technological developments and demand for information implies the need for continuous upgrading of professionals: ‘lifelong learning’. Lifelong learning is relevant not only for the professionals concerned but also for their organisations. These are in a permanent state of flux in order to adjust to their continually changing envir-onment. This may flow... (read more)

2006-09-21 12:00:00

High-precision GNSS Receivers

The benefits and availability of new signals and systems

What will the new GNSS signals bring to the user of high-precision receivers? This article provides a brief overview of what users can expect from GNSS systems that are currently in the modernisation/development stage, looking at new signals and emerging techniques including coverage of GNSS developments such as GPS, Galileo, GLONASS and Compass/Beidou. In view of the planned timeframe, what we can do to improve the robustness of our receivers with a special focus on interference and the upcoming solar maximum? The use of high-precision GPS for surveying applications has increased dramatically over the last decade. GPS receivers can provide... (read more)

2011-11-09 03:18:00

Difference between Theory and Practice

GIM Interviews Dr Vladimir Gershenzon, General Director, ScanEx

The third international conference on "Earth from Space" took place from 4th to 6th December in Moscow, Russia, with the theme "Most Effective Solutions". This meeting, accompanied by a small exhibition, aims to provide a forum for the exchange of experience in the practical use of satellite imagery for a broad spectrum of applications. ScanEx, headed by Dr Vladimir Gershenzon, is the main inspiration behind the conference. We interviewed him there.<P> When, why and how was ScanEx established, and what are your main products and services? After my graduation in 1980 I worked for several years at different institutes... (read more)

2008-02-19 12:00:00

Enormously Exciting Future in Geomatics

GIM International Interviews Hans Hess, exiting CEO, Leica Geosystems

Autumn 2005 brings at least two major changes to Leica Geosystems. The company has been taken over; in mid-October Sweden-based Hexagon formally took ownership. In addition, Hans Hess has left his post as CEO of Leica Geosystems, succeeded as of November 1st by Hexagon CEO Ola Rollén. We interviewed Hans Hess at Intergeo 2005. Leica Takeover On 27th October 2005 Leica Geosystems announced that following the takeover by Hexagon the Board had appointed Ola Rollén, CEO of Hexagon, as president of Leica Geosystems with effect from 1st November 2005. The current Board of Directors will step down at a specially... (read more)

2005-11-29 12:00:00

Automated Map Generalisation

Meeting Today's Information Demands

Nowadays spatial information is much more often displayed on digital devices than on a paper map. Within digital environments, users have high expectations regarding up-to-date information and consistent data when zooming in and out. The recent progress in automated map generalisation offers the potential to meet those high expectations. ‘Generalisation’ of geoinformation is the extraction of less-detailed data from highly detailed data to fit a specific purpose. Less-detailed data is more suitable for displaying geoinformation at small scales and for obtaining overview-like visualisations of a particular area. Interactive generalisation is time- and labour-intensive: it can take years to generalise a... (read more)

2014-10-24 10:23:15

Lidar, Imagery and InSAR for Digital Forestry

GIM International interviews Benoît St-Onge

Benoît St-Onge is a professor at the University of Quebec in Montreal, Canada. He works at the Department of Geography with a major research interest in 3D remote sensing for forest analysis. 'GIM International' recently interviewed Professor St-Onge to gain a better understanding of the challenges and innovations in this field. (By Martin Kodde, contributing editor, GIM International) In your research work, you have a clear focus on the use of Lidar and photogrammetry for analysis of vegetation, forests, etc. How did your interest in vegetation develop? When I chose to specialise in remote sensing at master level in the 1980s,... (read more)

2016-10-24 09:49:55

A New Age (I)

GIM International Interviews David Schell, Chairman and CEO, Open Geospatial Consortium

On 23rd October 2007, at the annual Geoint Symposium, the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc (OGC) announced that Microsoft Corporation had joined the organisation as a Principal Member. This important milestone was reason for us to approach David Schell, OGC chairman and CEO, and to ask him about the background to, benefits and consequences of Microsoft membership. Mr Schell touched on so many interesting issues that we are publishing this extended interview in two parts, this first focusing on the new Microsoft membership. The second part, to be published in GIM February, will focus on topics including benefits of standards implementation,... (read more)

2007-12-08 12:00:00

Blockchain in Geospatial Applications

What is a blockchain and how is it relevant for geospatial applications?

A blockchain is an immutable trustless registry of entries, hosted on an open distributed network of computers (called nodes). It is potentially safer and cheaper than traditional centralised databases, is resilient to attacks, enhances transparency and accountability and puts people in control of their own data. Blockchain technology is already being used in some geospatial applications, as explained here. (By Jonas Ellehauge, awesome map tools, Norway) As an immutable registry for transactions of digital tokens, blockchain is suitable for geospatial applications involving data that is sensitive or a public good, autonomous devices and smart contracts. Use Cases Here are some geospatial... (read more)

2016-10-06 09:13:54