In the Spotlight

In order to ensure a good and consistent supply of food it is very important that countries and regions know how much harvest a particular area will produce. PhD student Mobushir Riaz Khan at the University of Twente’s ITC Faculty has developed a method for using satellite images to determine which crops are cultivated in which areas. This method can also estimate how much harvest a given area is likely to yield, with an accuracy of 95 per cent. He will defend the dissertation based on this research on Wednesday, 23 February at the ITC Faculty.

At this year's BAU 2011 trade fair, which took place from 17th to 22nd January in Munich, the Leica DISTO D8 won an award for product innovation presented by Bundesarbeitskreis für Altbauerneuerung e.V. (BAKA), Bauverlag and Messe München.

Trimble introduced the new GeoExplorer 6000 series of high-accuracy Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) handheld computers. The series delivers dramatic improvements in difficult GNSS environments such as urban canyons and under tree canopy using Trimble Floodlight satellite shadow reduction technology.

On 31th January, a Leica SmartNet Greece partnership agreement between Leica Geosystems and its distribution partner Metrica, has been signed in Athens. Locally the network will maintain the name MetricaNet, as part of Leica SmartNet Europe, due to the long standing marketing of MetricaNet in Greece.

Pointools has launched a new high-value software bundle for working with point clouds – the billions of measurement points collected by 3D laser scanners. This new “Pointools Suite” gives users a portfolio of applications and plugs-ins designed to streamline the conversion, processing, and reuse of point cloud models, and eliminates the need for time-wasting translations while maintaining the visual quality and accuracy of the data.

Leica Geosystems, a manufacturer of airborne sensors, has recently announced a DSM extraction module for its leading line sensor workflow software Leica XPro, which provides advanced ground processing from data download to image generation.

Packt announces OpenStreetMap, a new book that provides geographic-information professionals with the freedom to make, alter, and use geographical data in a collaborative way. Written by Jonathan Bennett, this book introduces readers to the OSM project and guides them through the process of gathering, editing, and using OpenStreetMap data by making use of a series of real-world examples.

Leica Geosystems announces the exclusive distribution of RealityLINx Model 5.4 - powered by Leica point cloud Engine (pcE) technology. RealityLINx Model 5.4 speeds and simplifies the processing of as-built laser scans into intelligent models that feed into popular 3D plant design software and into INOVx plant asset management software.

Napatech has been awarded the prestigious Ernst & Young “Entrepreneur of the Year 2010” award in the category “Innovation” in Denmark. This is the second time that Napatech has received this honor having also won in 2008.