Large Scan-to-BIM Project: Merging Laser Scans with UAV to Get the Indoor and Outdoor

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: Hi, everybody. Thanks to be here for this presentation. I'm Florian Fauconnet of the founder and CEO of ATFF. It's a company in France from [INAUDIBLE] capture, laser scanning, and photogrammetry.

To support me-- just one, change the slide. [SPEAKING FRENCH]

Hi, everybody. Thanks to here for this presentation of laser scanning of hospital in France. I am Florian Fauconnet, the founder and CEO of ATFF. ATFF, it's a company in France of [INAUDIBLE] capture, of laser scanning and photogrammetry.

For this presentation--

For support me for this presentation, I have Thomas Roland of the marketing at ATFF, and Gilbert Milard of presales and Datech team France, and Alexandre Mihalache of Autodesk France. I give the floor to Thomas for the next step of this presentation.

THOMAS ROLAND: Hi, everyone. I'm Thomas Roland. I work in ATFF, and I deal with all the marketing and digital stuff.

So to start with this description of the class, so we'll present you the Reality Capture process for a hospital project. So we use two service and to two modules to deal with this project. We use UAV photogrammetry for indoor and laser scanning for an answer, UAVs photogrammetry for outdoor and laser scanning for indoor. We'll explain the assembly step of point cloud in the verification step, and the assembly in the ReCap Pro software.

So what about ATFF? So ATFF is Reality Capture service provider since 2014. So we intervene in the BIM sectors. We're campaigning the customer from the first step of capture and until the last step of modeling in ReCap for Revit. We intervene in the architectural, town planning, industrial, and in industry sector. And our first and main customers are the architects, the company's construction, and their design offices.

So we provide like complete, quick, and big service in all Europe of UAV's photogrammetry, laser scanning, fixed, and mobile mapping. So in Reality Capture, we can say that the world is composed of two type of information, the digital information and the physical information. So in BIM sector, you can look through vast libraries of 3D models that represent physical objects. The geometry of structures can be recorded or captured from the physical-- from the physical world and processed into digital data. This is Reality Capture.

But in our projects, what we can say about Reality Capture, what are the main benefits are like the hospital that we scanned were was the highest hospital in France. The travel and the moves that we have to do were really helped by Reality Capture, because we were limited the cost and the risk by limiting trouble. Also, the customer were able to measure precisely and infinitely, I mean, without any restrictions. And what Reality Capture lets do to the employees and people that are doing with the project is that by giving an accessible model for everyone, it helps people understand more about the project.

So what about the tools that we used? We use multiple scanner [INAUDIBLE] to scan the indoor. For other projects, not for the hospital, because we only use UAVs and scanners, but mobile mapping is something that we can do also for lands, for big industries. And drones for the hospital project with DGI drones.

So [INAUDIBLE] the Medical Center of Aiguilles, so we've been mandated to capture a hospital in the Queyras, which is part of France. Really nice. I really advise you to come to visit it. It's really nice.

So basically they wanted to accommodate more short stay beds, and to answer the needs and the new security standards in France. So for this, we met some constraints.

So for the constraints that we met, we-- as the site was really high and hard to access. We had to use like big vehicles to come up there. And it was really freezing, because we were working in winter, so that was really hard for us.

So the solution that we-- sorry for this. Technology is good sometimes, but not every time. I'm really sorry about this.

So let's deal with the solution that we find to answer the constraints of the project. So basically, to solve the project, ATFF decided to merge laser scanning- large laser scanning. And you have this photogrammetry in ReCap to provide complete survey and model 3D for the customer.

And for the deliverables, ATFF provided a color scan-- a color point cloud for the outside with the facade, because it was really important for the customer to have the facade in color. But for the inside, which was not interesting for him, we delivered a black and white point cloud.

After optimization, we were able to provide a six gigabyte file. And by optimizing this, I'm explaining that-- [FRENCH]. So I'm just saying-- telling this again. So at the end of this capture, we had 120 gigabyte file that we optimized in ReCap to get a six gigabyte file for the customer.

That truly helped it. Thank you. Then, I'll let Florian Fauconnet speak about the technical part. Sir?

AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].

THOMAS ROLAND: Yes.

AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].

THOMAS ROLAND: We have big workstations, HP workstations, that helps us to deal with all this amount of information.

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: I explained that before in the presentation.

THOMAS ROLAND: Yeah. Thanks to workstations, basically.

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: Thanks, Thomas. I'll explain to you what the setting up for large projects like that. So projects of hospital is like 1,200 scan in one just project. And you walk into a wash station.

It was a good way-- it was, in principle, good way for the large scan. It's first basic step is make an exhaustive visit of the site with the technical guys to know all the building. Because the key pass for all [INAUDIBLE] as this hospital, the system a virtual key, electronic key, is very amazing for scanning, because just one key for all of them.

And another point important, it's notify all the people. What is scanned is not easy for all people what is scanning. And it's very important to notify the people on the medical staff and the patients-- the patient of the hospital.

To do a big project like that, it's important to split the scan at the beginning, because, as you say, a big project, it's very complex for ReCap or for the storage disk. Begin split or beginning second the project, it's important to split into subprojects like Lego, Lego games. And you can have a skeleton for a project.

And this project will have no drawbacks. It's a whole scan of the outdoors. It's just one project. All stairs is just one project. On each floor, it's just one sub project. Outdoor scan, it's 52 lasers scanning in color. Under good structure of a scan, we have also like 22 polygonal points surveyor with a robotic station for our control of the box of the structure to have a really good box for make the Lego for the skeleton.

Another point important for this project, it's we use already numbered targets, because all rooms is very similar, because it's like a hotel or a hospital. Medical room is like another medical room. And you have to stick 3,000 targets in the hospital. All target is number, or is alphabet number on number alphabet to have never the same target.

As I was saying, it's important to split the project to have a little sub-project to addition after more [INAUDIBLE] project in the one project ReCap. One stair, one project. One floor, one project. One outdoor, one project.

If your floor is too big, split in two projects. Never, never go more than 200 scan into one project. It's better for optimize of project.

The same things for floor. If you have more than 200, you can split. And it's very important in this project to have all the numbers of scan to assembly after-- at the office. This part, it's all in the sight. After go at the office, at the office, [INAUDIBLE] of the scan is 60 hours of scan in five day. 1,200 scan and count on the 45-- or 40 gigabyte of raw data Faro, and a lot of coffee.

To process it quickly is very big count, because we have a lot of data and the customer wants a delivery in 10 days. It's very complex to delivery it in 10 days. Solution, we have two tools in the office. It's ReCap Pro, it's amazing software, and a huge Workstation.

You have for this project-- this project is just assembly in one Workstation. So Workstation, it's Z840 HP, with more than 200 gigabyte of RAM. And the point important, it's a Z-Quad Drive. It's like more than-- more speed like your SSD.

It's [INAUDIBLE] SSD. It's very important to access time and for ReCap, it's very amazing. On [INAUDIBLE], for this project, it's very important to have a strong Workstation to assembly. For just viewer, it's not necessary to have a huge Workstation. For assembly, it's very important.

Time is money. To import scan, ReCap is not very excellent, because ReCap import just one project, one scan by one scan. For 1,200 scans is very, very long. ReCap team, change it is very, very important.

To optimize that, we have found-- we have found a solution. We have a huge Workstation. And if you just import with ReCap just once on the CPU process, the import. But you have quite some different Windows session in the Workstation.

At the beginning, I said it's important to split the project one step, one project. One floor, one project. One stair, one project. One ReCap project, one Windows session.

You can launch just one ReCap in the Windows sessions. But in Windows, we can launch multi-session. We launched 10 projects and 10 ReCap windows. And we can use full spec of the Workstation. We just split-- just switch of the session.

Automatically assembly of ReCap, it's very amazing for our project. But in this case, all room look alike another room. It's very impossible for the software to know where is-- why is it-- we have make tests. But in the same registration, you have just 45 rooms in the same room. It's not possible to have an automatically assembly with this project. But you have target number-- number target on just assembly of the scan by scan.

Assembly 10 sub-projects. You have a sub-project like exterior, like first floor, second floor. After you have just finished on assembly and verified the whole sub-project, if the register is correct and all is good, you can create a new project and import directly ECFP of the sub-project.

It's like a big Lego. You have exterior, first partition, like first stairs. Like Lego for making a skeleton, and you can put all floors in the project.

At this step, have a huge Workstation is very important, because reaffining between sub-project, you use some-- it use full capacity of the workstation. For just reaffining of one block, with one little block, it's one hour with a huge Workstation. Thanks ReCap team. It's very important at this point.

Large project, large data, it's very strong for the Workstation. For optimize that for the customer, we have found a solution. Sorry.

In this folder, wider folder, it's an old scan of the hospital. You can create a folder by state-- by floor. And you can put all scans in the folder. Hide all the folder and just import-- export just hide all folders.

Show just one folder of first floor, make an export version, and re-import this export. And after, when you delivered the client, the customer, you just hide all. You have the view for the customer.

And just you have a sixth scan show in the ReCap. It's more efficient far ReCap to display six scan like as a-- sixth scan. OK.

The entire of the building is with laser scanning. And for the outdoor, we make photogrammetry with a UAV to have the roof, and to make the cover of the building. You have used the new software of Autodesk ReCap Photo. It's like a new software connected to the cloud. No computing program needed in your local Workstation or the process in the cloud Autodesk. And you can upload max 1,000 pictures.

Cloud is fantastic, because before you use ReCap, we used [INAUDIBLE] or Reality Capture. But now, you just ReCap Photo, because all the processes in the cloud, the result is very amazing. Just upload your picture.

The process for this result is one day. And you'll receive an email, and the project is ready to downloadable. And the result is like that.

Like it's a merge of the result of the photogrammetry of the ReCap Photo. It's very accurate and tiny-- tiny texture. It's very amazing. Just for some cloud credit in the Autodesk cloud is very easy to have this result.

At the same time, the cloud delivered point cloud image and auto image for just one process. And you can just merge it with scan, because this result is geolocated. And it's easy to merge it in ReCap. Just import, skip registration, and the result is here at a good place.

I give the floor to--

GILBERT MILARD: Thank you.

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: --Gilbert.

GILBERT MILARD: --Florian. Hello, everyone. My name is Gilbert Milard. I'm working for the distributor in France. And let me to introduce you to next steps. After the ATFF company delivers a point cloud, we have a big problem. It is to convert this point cloud into model, digital model. And two, for the customer, it's very important to obtain quickly this model. And we found services in the cloud, Snapkin.

Snapkin gives you some different service on the cloud to convert the point cloud [INAUDIBLE] in Revit model. Now, at this step, we have a big problem, the size of the point cloud. Sure. Snapkin solved this problem because, in processing the point cloud to reduce the size before you send it on the cloud.

And when Snapkin receives the point cloud, we have some tools to convert to analyze them. [INAUDIBLE] floor to generate the model. AutoTools detects all the walls, detects takes all the floor, makes them [INAUDIBLE] the model with the different level. Structure the model in Revit directly.

Families Tools give you some solution to-- when you form your family inside this model. And ViewTools give you some solution to make some [INAUDIBLE] line or some [INAUDIBLE] view directly, in your model when you select some different object inside the model.

Who is Snapkin? It's a French tech company since 2013. This service is to convert all point cloud 2D and 3D architectural models for the professionals. And you can convert the open cloud in different formats-- Revit, DWG, IFC. It's three [INAUDIBLE] services in the cloud.

For our customer, we provide these services. However, on the web navigator, like Chrome, Edge, Firefox, like that, software, you can imagine to select your point cloud. You need to create your project. You can select your point cloud and ask about your service to convert directly your point cloud in a simple model release.

You don't have windows, you won't have doors, you won't have roof, you just have the different walls. And the [INAUDIBLE].

AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].

GILBERT MILARD: [INAUDIBLE], sorry. For our customers, it's very important, because this model is very complex. We have, on the [FRENCH] [INAUDIBLE] very complex. And with this solution, we have [INAUDIBLE].

On this slide, you can see a toolbar inside directly Revit. It's possible to pilot to different tools to get your point cloud. And to process, before you send this point cloud in the cloud, I want to reduce the size. I want you optimize the point cloud, because when the ATFF makes some scanner, we have a big problem with the scan, because when you're trying to scan on a closed situation, the scan may send double point, or we have a huge point in a closed zone.

And Snapkin has the capability to analyze this density and to reduce the size. And when you get your point cloud, you have 16% to 19% of reduction. It's really a huge reduction.

In the next step, to create your projects, it's very simple. You just need to name your project. And you have to select .e57 formats, not RCP format.

Why? Because something can use the RCP one, because it's from Autodesk. And .e57 format, it's an open source format. And so very important like that.

The next step is to undensification local process. You do this process on your computer directly before you send the point cloud on the cloud. We have a big compression. And after that, Snapkin sends your point cloud directly on the Snapkin server.

Now, you can-- you can see before the processing and after the processing what's happened. Before the processing, a huge point. And you need to clean this point cloud. You can use Revit-- ReCap Pro, sorry, or Recap to do this cleaning, but it's really long. And with Snapkin, you have the capability to clean automatically this point cloud, and to get your point cloud more cleaning, and with [INAUDIBLE] more rigorous.

Once the processing is terminated, you receive a notification by email to tell you to download your project. And you have three things you can obtain. The first one is the Revit model of this. [INAUDIBLE] model, you have the wall, you have the roof. You don't have the windows, you don't have the doors, you don't have the roof, but you have the beginning of your model. It's a very impressive activity.

In a similar way, you have a image of the photo. This image is very important in Revit, because you can substitute this image with the point cloud to obtain a large performance when you want to complete your model. With this operation, you don't have to refresh your point cloud. It's [INAUDIBLE] at whole turn.

With the Ortho-photo, you can see, you can identify exactly where you need to put your door, you need to put your windows, you need to complete your model. And you have each in a background to provide this model. In the last way, you get your point cloud cleaned with a size really reduced. And this time, it's really important for the storage. You don't need to have more storage in your computer.

One of my options the model, I cannot use in Revit different way to explore this model. In the first application for this customer, it is real important to get some information about your weather. Again, [INAUDIBLE] is the model. I forgot to specify in Snapkin, or Snapkin gives you the geolocalization about your point cloud and can use it directly in Revit.

At this time, the customer can specify the project localization, can analyze the solar illumination, can analyze the impact of the shadows of this building. And the ask is to make an extension about this building. With this information, we can communicate with architects, with engineer, for this [INAUDIBLE].

In a second way, you complete the model, you can see it's really a complex project. And we obtain this model, this different building. And in my step, I just need to complete the model with my type of different category on the model Revits.

I don't know in the first step which type of walls, which types of roof I have. I need to do this job with-- [FRENCH]-- with somebody.

AUDIENCE: Oh.

[LAUGH]

GILBERT MILARD: When you need to analyze wall, you need to--

AUDIENCE: And that is [INAUDIBLE]?

GILBERT MILARD: You want to obtain exactly which kind of comparison you have in your wall to specify this in a Revit model. But the true way to analyze about the different surface for this customer because you need to associate some electronic [INAUDIBLE] at different surface. And with this Revit model, you have capability to name a surface to associate some equipment inside it this model. And it's a very, very, very good thing for him to list all equipment inside its project.

In this slide, we found some warnings. It's normal, because snapkin creates some model. But don't know how you want to work inside the model. You kind of have some issues to solve. And inside Revit, you have this possibility and to list all the warnings and to try to solve this problem.

The customer, at this time, gets 3D view and the plan view with some [INAUDIBLE] plan to understand better this model and to do this modification. On [INAUDIBLE] the customer gets quickly some information about your surface. And the specified information about the different services, like security, like medical [INAUDIBLE], like technical activity to maintain to the building.

Where it is sort of very good application to extract some information with schedule. And the customer has the possibility to give this information with an Excel format, because we can export, or we can import some data. And with the ODBC connection, we have the possibility to create some PLM activity inside this project.

And those are benefits about Revit. You know it's to obtain the different cutting line in dynamic activity. When the customer needs to explain some project renovation, he can directly show this view, and show it about different service inside the hospital activity.

In this way, the customer discover the power of Revit, because we can use some filter to change your different graphic view. And with the different properties, you have the capability to change this graphic view. And this way, he has this possibility to know where is the structure wall and to complete. If this model is not correctly in the cloud, you have the possibility to change this [INAUDIBLE] with the other walls. And he can work in better, with this model [INAUDIBLE].

In France, we love the plan view. And with the scale view, we have some problem to share with our plans, sorry. And with Revit, you have the [INAUDIBLE] huge capability to specify each view with the true scale, sorry, inside the plan, and can transfer this plan with other services. I'm [INAUDIBLE] in my explanation. That's all for me. I'm [INAUDIBLE], thank you.

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: Thank you, Gilbert. So to end this presentation, we will just-- we just wanted to present you and to say that ATFF is-- will release soon a system of HTC VIVE that will let you see and move in your point cloud in VR.

So stay tuned. And to finish, here is the video of Autodesk of the hospital project that was the case of this presentation. Thank you very much.

ADRIEN TRUWANT: ATFF specialize in Reality Capture. Our speciality is to capture 100% of a site, and as well to assemble the data at the office.

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: The hospital approached us, because at ATFF, we have a good reputation in Reality Capture. The hospital is the highest in France, and is located in Aiguilles. They needed an accurate and updated Revit model, so they could make some renovations.

RAPHAEL VINCENT: [SPEAKING FRENCH].

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: We needed to survey the site and accurately record the information, so that we could create a point cloud in ReCap. With Reality Capture, we can get accurate information and only need to visit the site once.

ADRIEN TRUWANT: For this project, we used laser scanning to capture the inside of the building, and as well the drone to capture the outside of the building. The very good benefit of ReCap is to be able to assemble some laser scanning and photogrammetry. And like that, we can recombine all the information from one site.

As soon as we create the point cloud, the architect can get the data we are generating in ReCap and he can import those ones into Revit, or use it in Navisworks to assemble one BIM project, and to have everything very accurate from the beginning, instead of starting from scratch.

Using ReCap is a very big help, because we're able to do some annotation directly into the point cloud. And then everybody from a BIM project is able to see those annotations and being able to visualize everything better.

RAPHAEL VINCENT: [SPEAKING FRENCH].

ADRIEN TRUWANT: Using ReCap, it's pretty easy to visualize a project. This help as well to have a better vision and make some very good decision and to see things quicker before the work is starting on the site.

FLORIAN FAUCONNET: We save time and money using ReCap, because the data is completely accurate and point cloud is automatically assembled, which makes everything more efficient. Thank you. Thank you so much.