DEM file?

[markf]

My work is mostly in a scenic mountain area. I was told that an out of state Architectural firm used some "3D computer stuff" to position a house with windows that framed the prominent mountain views perfectly. The only 3D model of the mountains here that I am aware of is USGS DEM files.

 

I have imported 7.5 minute USGS DEM files of our area into Max and surfaced them. My question is how would one go about accurately positioning a house model, horizontaly and verticly, into a DEM mesh.

 

Thank you for any replies

[Ernest Burden III]

Some GIS software can key together many different USGS data layers, so you would have your house positioned via any of those other data spaces.

 

A new way would be to use the Google Earth plug-in for SketchUp. I haven't done in myself yet. There MAY be a similar plug for Max?

 

The USGS has a set of TIFF files that are topos with forest coverage, roads, urban areas, water and some structures. They match the DEM files exactly (after a careful cropping)! So you can import a DEM as a surface and then use the topo map as an image map texture to position your project in X,Y and Z. You can match up aerial ortho-corrected color photography (also from the USGS) to the topo map and then simply swap the map for the photo and have a fantastic photo-mapped 3D surface with your project positioned on it.

 

Fun! But it'll take you all day to do, so plan for that.

[markf]

Ernest,

 

Thank you for your reply. If I understand, I would map the corresponding scanned usgs map to a rectangel in Max and size it to match the DEM. This will give me UTM and degree-minute longitude and latitude lines for X and Y. Perhaps I would use a known mountain summit elevation as reference to get the Z established. Having navigated in the real world with topo maps, gps and compass, I question the level of accuracy this will produce. Would an architect really trust something like this to site and arrange views for a multi million dollar home?

 

If I got the ortho corrected photography how woud I map this to the 3D terrain mesh such that it was proerly aligned to all of the Z varition? I am thinking that photography is taken and ortho corrected to be from directly above. Would that appear odd when the terrain mesh was viewed other than in top view?

 

Thanks again for your input!

[DareManojlo]

Hey guys,

 

This is my first post in this forum. I hope I can help with the following:

 

If you would like to transfer some area in US to your 3d application, visit the following link: http://seamless.usgs.gov/website/seamless/viewer.php

Here you can select and download almost any region located in US with the precision of 30 and sometimes even 10 meters (If you are not a metric person, then that's good detail). When downloading, choose geotiff format. Next load the data into 3DEM program (totally free program) available at http://www.visualizationsoftware.com/3dem.html In that program, save data as 'terrain matrix' format.

 

Now you can import terrain matrix format into 3ds max using GroundWiz. GroundWiz is our procedural terrain map for 3ds max (shameless plug there). Actually you can import the terrain with a free version of our tool that you can find at http://www.gugila.com/ Before doing all of the above, check how we transferred Yosemite park into 3ds max.

 

Thanks