Blogs

TBC Tip #232: Validate Drone Data with Background Maps

By Anna Zapel posted 6 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! Today we’re talking about how to validate your drone data with background maps and the Reference Image Viewing Distance property in TBC. This is the easiest way to ensure your photogrammetry data is accurately imported and aligned with your area of interest. With TBC you can quickly verify that your drone data is correctly geo-referenced and positioned within the project area, identify and correct any misalignments or data import errors early in the workflow, and understand the spatial context of your project. To begin this workflow follow these steps: Import your drone data set into a defined geo-referenced coordinate system. ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #231: Shoulder Drop Off Analysis

By Anna Zapel posted 13 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! Today we’re talking about the new shoulder drop-off analysis feature. The Shoulder Drop Off Analysis feature enables users to identify and evaluate the vertical distance between the pavement surface and the adjacent shoulder. The tool can be used within the "Inspect Pavement Condition" command to isolate and analyze areas prone to shoulder drop-offs. This new workflow ensures road shoulders meet safety standards by identifying hazardous drop-offs and allows prioritization of maintenance activities for decision-making and compliance. To begin this workflow, import and process your mobile mapping data and follow these steps: In ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #230: Automatic Lane Line Extraction

By Anna Zapel posted 19 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! Happy New Year! Today we’re talking about the automated lane line extraction tool. The automation of the lane line markings extraction allows users to create lines that trace lane line markings with minimal manual input. The tool can be used within the “Inspect Pavement Condition” command to isolate the analysis area. This feature streamlines the process of creating accurate road markings for various applications, saving time and increasing the precision of your deliverables. To begin this workflow, import and process your Trimble Mobile Mapping data and follow these steps: In the Point Clouds tab navigate to the Extraction group ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #229: Save Linework Enhancement to Create Individual Linestrings

By Anna Zapel posted 12-20-2024
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! If you’ve ever needed to provide clear site context for field staking or machine control, this tip is for you! By generating individual linestrings from a corridor surface, you can enhance both horizontal and vertical context for your field team. This workflow will enable you to generate linestrings that help visualize the surface and give horizontal context to your field team so they can easily collect vertical information from the underlying surface. To begin this workflow, select a surface you have created from an alignment and corridor and follow these steps: Go to Project Explorer and choose the surface you want linework ...
2 comments

TBC Tip #228: Orthomosaic from Facades Command

By Anna Zapel posted 12-12-2024
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! In this tip, we’re jumping into the new Orthomosaic from Facades Command! This workflow is especially useful for accurately documenting building exteriors, creating detailed facade maps for inspections, or generating high-resolution images for architectural and construction purposes. Creating an orthomosaic from facades allows for precise and detailed visual representation of vertical structures. So let’s jump into it! To begin this workflow, import and process your drone images into TBC within a defined geo-referenced coordinate system and follow these steps: In the Photogrammetry tab, navigate to the Deliverables group and click ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #227: Vertical Shaft As-Built Verification

By Anna Zapel posted 12-06-2024
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! Often in underground mining, we need to build vertical shafts for ventilation, access, and material transportation among many other functions! This is supported through surveying work especially in verification. So today, we’re diving into TBC’s vertical shafts verification tools. Using TBC, you can ensure that constructed vertical shafts align with design specifications, detect any deviations between the as-built condition and the design, and generate detailed reports documenting the verification process and results. To begin this workflow, import the scan data of the vertical shaft into TBC and and follow these steps: Create ...
0 comments

TBC #227: Trimble Business Center v2024.10 Release

By Anna Zapel posted 11-22-2024
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! Trimble Business Center v2024.10 is now available! This new version carries many new improvements and with innovative features designed to streamline workflows, enhance data accuracy and boost productivity. Check out the new improvements on the TBC 2024.10 Release Notes , the What’s New in TBC v2024.10 Power Hour , and the TBC 2024.10 Read Me . Many of these new features will have their own tip in the coming weeks, but for now I am going to highlight my new favorite features and important changes: Enhanced GIS data sharing and interoperability capabilities between data providers and data consumers like Trimble, Esri, Civil ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #225: Reference Key of Reserved Classes When Training Models

By Anna Zapel posted 09-17-2024
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! For those of you who are accustomed to training your own point cloud classification models, you may have wondered how to check what classification codes you can use for training your custom point clouds regions. TBC has a number of pre-trained classifiers such as outdoor (terrestrial), railway, etc. Each of these models classifies points into certain point regions. These regions have names and classification codes that are reserved for them. When you train your own classification model in TBC it is not recommended to use the reserved codes so that you do not overwrite existing classifications and maintain consistency in your projects. Below is ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #224: Tagging Imported Files to Group Relevant Files

By Anna Zapel posted 07-26-2024
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! This week, let’s dive into a handy feature in TBC: Tagging Imported Files. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by a long list of imported files, this tip is for you! The Tag property allows you to 'rename' and reorder files in the Project Explorer, making it easier to manage and find what you need. For some context, the Project Explorer lists all data files you bring in alphabetically under the Imported Files node. However, sometimes when importing field data you need a different organization method to find your files. Therefore, you can use the tags to help you group similar files together, like topo files or cross-sections, without actually ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #223: Create an IRI Report

By Anna Zapel posted 07-12-2024
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! This week we’ll be running through TBC’s International Roughness Index (IRI) report workflow. An IRI report is used to evaluate road pavement roughness and its impact on vehicle ride quality. The report helps identify sections of the alignment that may require corrective action to improve smoothness. To begin this workflow, click on the “Point Clouds” tab on the top ribbon and then click “IRI Report” in the Measure group. This workflow may also be accessed by clicking on the “Mobile Mapping” tab on the top ribbon and then click “IRI Report” in the Analysis group.This will bring up the “IRI Report” pane where you can decide ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #222 - TBC Version 2024.00 Release

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 05-10-2024
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! This week’s TBC tip is an announcement and celebration of the new TBC V.2024.00 release! With this new release we are pleased to announce a variety of new features and improvements that have been added to TBC. These new features What's New in TBC 2024.00 , What's New in TBC 2024.00 Power Hour , and 2024.00 Release Notes . Some of the exciting new features include: Embracing AI Technologies: Enhanced Data Processing with Advanced Point Cloud Classification Technological Integration: Streamlining Pavement Inspection Processes Connected Workflow Optimization: Seamlessly Integrating Data Across Platforms Advanced Aerial ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #221 - Road Corridors - Visualizing and Quality control

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 03-19-2024
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! This week's tip is a series of tricks on view settings, controls, and verifying attributes for corridor data. Using these tools should make working with corridor data a much more efficient process! With some corridor data, it can be hard to see what is going on in the different view types (plan view, cross section, profile view). With the “Layer Manager” tool open, change the line weight (1A) to any value above 0 to thicken the line work in each view type. This is especially useful for making the data easier to see when presenting it or on a video call. This is also where users can individually color the lines. If you select a surface ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #220 - Training Custom Classification Models

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 02-15-2024
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! This week’s TBC tip is a guide to help users understand training of custom 3D deep learning models, specifically focusing on training the validation files. While TBC has offered classifications for many common objects, such as buildings and powerlines, there are countless other objects that users might want to create custom point cloud classification models for. Before getting started on this workflow, users are going to need to understand two things: training files and validation files. Training and validation files are point cloud files with a classified region that represents a new class that you want to train the model for. For example, ...
2 comments

TBC Tip #219 - Advanced Point Cloud Filtering

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 12-10-2023
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! With the release of Trimble Business Center v. 2023.1 loads of new features have been added to help improve user workflows and the capabilities of TBC. Check out this link here to learn more about these new features, but this tip is going to focus on just one new tool for manipulating point clouds. This new tool is the “Advanced Point Cloud Filtering” tool, which can be applied to any point cloud to create a new point cloud region using elevation as the defining parameter. This is especially helpful for creating a “ground” class from a point cloud that excludes all grasses and low lying vegetation. Here are the basic steps for this workflow. ...
2 comments

TBC Tip #218 - Manhole Extraction

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 12-10-2023
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! Feature extraction is one of my favorite tool sets within TBC, and there are so many ways to incorporate it into your workflow. This week’s tip is focused on one type of point feature extraction, specifically manhole, which was released in TBC version 5.80. Read the release notes here to learn more, or check out this video walkthrough! 1. To start this workflow, select the “Point Clouds” tab (1A) and click on the “Extract Point Feature” (1B) in the extraction section. 2. This will open up the “Extract Point Feature” pane where you can select which type of extraction you want (2A). There are two different ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #217 - Trimble Business Center V.2023.10 Release

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 11-10-2023
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! This week’s TBC tip is an announcement and celebration of the new TBC V.2023.10 release! With this release, TBC has moved from the traditional versioning system (5.8, 5.9, 6.0) to the new year-based model (2023.10, 2024.0). There have also been quite a few new improvements added to TBC which can be checked out at the TBC 2023.10 Release Notes , TBC Power Hour , and the TBC 2023.10 Read Me . Many of these new features will have their own tip in the coming weeks, but for now I am going to highlight my new favorite features and important changes. One of the coolest new features is the pavement condition inspection, which allows users ...
0 comments

TBC TIP #216 - Drape Geometry Enhancement

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 11-07-2023
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! The “Drape Geometry on Point Cloud” command has been a popular command since its release in TBC v.5.90. Using this feature, users are able to elevate the vertices of CAD lines to points in a point cloud. We are happy to announce that with the release of TBC v.2023.10 the “Drape Geometry on Point Cloud'' feature is getting a set of enhancements! This update includes features such as: In addition to lines, you can now select to elevate one or more CAD points to the point cloud using all of the available search strategies. Apply a specified horizontal offset to CAD linear objects during the elevation process. Select to ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #215 - File Types

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 10-13-2023
Be the first person to recommend this.
Hello TBC’ers! TBC is able to read and write to so many different types of files that it can sometimes be overwhelming. This week’s tip is a list of nearly all the different types of file that TBC can work with, and a brief explanation of what they are. Some files are only used by specific commands or from specific field software so be sure to double check the tools you are using! Importable Data Formats Exportable/Uploadable Data Formats File Format Description File Format Description .06o RINEX (GPS base files) .12dxml 12d files .12da, 12dxml ...
0 comments

TBC Tip #214 - Terminology and Symbols

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 10-06-2023
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! Within TBC, there are loads of symbols and terms that, while useful, can be difficult to understand at first. This week’s tip is a collection of symbols, terms, acronyms, and abbreviations used within TBC and all of these can be found in the “Help” section Node Type Description This is the imported files node. This is a station node. The icon represents the survey instrument type. It is followed by the point ID and an "S" number in parenthesis that uniquely identifies the station. This is the station setup node. The icon is followed by the setup ...
1 comment

TBC Tip #213 - Contours Continued

By Cole Schubert EXT posted 09-15-2023
1 person recommends this.
Hello TBC’ers! Contours are a staple in mapping, and are a useful way to visualize elevations in both plan and 3D view within TBC. A previous tip (Tip #114) covered creating contour lines over a surface using the “Create Contours” tool. This tip is a continuation of that and dives further into the contour tools available in TBC. The first tool is “Quick Contours” and can be found under the “Surfaces” tab and in the “Contours” section (1A). Clicking on it will open up a new “Create Quick Contours” pane. From this pane (2A) select the surface you want to create contours for, or create a new surface (2B). Name the contour layer, select the interval, frequency, ...
0 comments