VrMosaic
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ON-LINE REFERENCE DOCUMENTATION CARDINAL SYSTEMS, LLC 386-439-2525 |
VR MOSAIC TUTORIAL |
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This tutorial will walk you through all of the steps needed to create mosaic images using VrMosaic. All steps taken by the user will be shown in Bold Italicized print. This is not intended to demonstrate all of the features in VrMosaic, but will serve as a general guide to the mosaicing process. Please see the VrMosaic help file for detailed information on all VrMosaic features.
1. Getting Started (Video)
2. Setting project parameters (Video)
3. Preparing to collect seams (Video)
4. Collecting seam lines
4.1. Collecting using open seams
4.1.1. Collecting strip to strip seam lines (Video)
4.1.2. Collecting image to image seam lines (Video)
4.2. Collecting using closed seams (polygon mode) (Video – coming soon)
5. Editing seam lines
5.1. Editing using standard mode (Video – coming soon)
5.2. Editing using dynamic mode (Video – coming soon)
6. Creating final mosaics
6.1. Output using manual mode (Video – coming soon)
6.2. Output using batch mode
6.2.1. Creating a sheet layout (Video – coming soon)
6.2.2. Selecting to output (Video – coming soon)
1. Getting Started
In this section of the tutorial, you will launch VrMosaic and start the Mosaic application. It is assumed that the VrMosaic program has already been installed on the computer.
- Select the Start->Programs->VrOne->Vr Mosaic menu item to launch the Vr Mosaic program. The VrMosaic main window should be displayed along with one graphics window.
- In the VrMosaic main window pull down menus, select the Image->Mosaic item. Alternately, you can use select the Mosaic icon, or type in MOS in the main window command prompt area. This will display the Mosaic application dialogs and two additional graphics windows.
2. Setting project parameters
In this section of the tutorial, you will use the Project Parameters dialog box to define the new project settings.
- Select the “Project Setup” button in the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “7. Enter Params” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display the project settings dialog box. This dialog is separated into several tabbed pages that represent different areas of the project settings. We will only change the few items that are needed to complete this tutorial. It is recommended that you become familiar with all project settings before completing your first mosaic project
- Select the General tab page.
- Set the Seam line file parameter to the following: x:\your_job_location\seams.vr.
4. NOTE: Replace x:\your_job_location\ with the location of an existing folder on your computer. You can use the browse button (…) to select the location without having to type it in.
5. Set the Strip-Photo separator character to match the filename format of your ortho images.
6. Set the Number of digits for strip number and Number of digits for photo number to match the filename format of your ortho images.
7. Select the “Define Images” button. This will display the Image Files dialog, which allows ortho images to be added and removed from the project.
8. Select the “Add…” button, and use the Add Image Files to add all of your ortho images to the project.
9. Select the “Ok” button to close the Add Image Files dialog.
10.
Select the Output tab page.
11. Set the Batch sheet output path to: x:\your_mosaic_output_location\
12. NOTE: Replace x:\your_mosaic_output_location with the location of an existing folder on your computer. You can use the browse button (…) to select the location without having to type it in.
- Set the Output mosaic image file name to: x:\your_job_location\mosaic1.tif.
14. NOTE: Replace x:\your_job_location\ with the location of an existing folder on your computer. You can use the browse button (…) to select the location without having to type it in.
15. Select the “Ok” button. You will be prompted so save the project settings to a file.
16. Type in a new filename for this project parameter file, and select the “Save” button. All of the images that were added to the project will now be opened. This may take a while if a large number of images were added, and the images do not have pyramid files created yet. After the images have been opened, you see the results in all three graphics windows. By default the main graphics window (Window 1) will display images only in their true geographic location. The Overview window will show images and image borders in their true geographic location. The Layout window will show the image borders only in a default layout location with no images overlapping each other.
3. Preparing to collect seams
In this section of the tutorial, you will set up the project windows and activate a subset of the project images in preparation for collecting seam lines.
- The first step will be to arrange the windows to make maximum use of the screen area.
1. Select “9 More options” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a new MenuKeys dialog.
2. Select “1 Reset Windows” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a confrmation dialog.
3. Select the “Yes” button in response to the Reset Window confirmation dialog.
- The next step is to deactivate all images that aren’t needed when collecting the current seam line. On large projects, having all images open and active can cause the seam line collection process to very slow. In most cases this will consist of the current image strip along with the strips above and below it.
1. Highlight all image strips in the VrMosaic Status dialog. This can be done quickly be pointing to a single image strip, and then pressing Ctrl-A.
2. Select the “Set Inactive” button. This will close all of the images in the project. The graphics windows should now be empty.
3. Highlight the first image strip in the project along with any image strips that are adjacent to it. If you are starting with an image strip at the edge of the project boundary, then only one other image strip will need to be highlighted. Hold down the Ctrl key while selecting image strips to allow multiple individual strips to be selected.
4. Select the “Set Active” button. This will open the images in the selected image strips. The graphics windows should now be displaying the images in the selected image strips.
4. Collecting seam lines
In this section of the tutorial, you will collect seam lines using all collection methods.
4.1. Collecting using open seams
Open seam lines are the primary method used to define seams in VrMosaic. Open seam lines are used to define a common seam between two overlapping images or two overlapping image strips. Open seam lines can be as simple as a two-point line, or can be very detailed containing thousands of points. The normal collection process consists of placing open seam lines between image strips, and then placing open seam lines between each image in the image strips.
4.1.1. Collecting strip to strip seam lines
In this section of the tutorial, you will collect two seam lines between two sets of image strips.
1. Select the “Place Seams” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “1 Place Seams” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a new MenuKeys dialog, and the VrMosaic Place Seams Steps dialog. The layout window will highlight the active strips or images.
2. Make sure the status for step 1 (Toggle Seam Mode) in the VrMosaic Place Seams dialog displays “Between Strips”. If not, press the “Toggle Seam Mode” button, or select “3 Tog Seam Mode” from the MenuKeys dialog.
3. You should see image borders for all active images in the Layout window. If not, type “ZOOA” in the command prompt area, and the select anywhere in the Layout window.
4. The first two strips should be surrounded with a dashed highlight line in the Layout window. If not, point to and select the first image strip using button 1 in the layout window. The first image strip should now be highlighted along with the next strip. If the next strip is not highlighted, point to and select the second image strip using button 2.
5. Make sure the status for step 2 (Select Images/Strips) in the VrMosaic Place Seams dialog displays the two strip numbers that you intend to place a seam line between. If not, follow the instructions in the previous step.
6. In graphics window 1, zoom in close to one end of the image strips, and near the middle of the overlap area between the strips. This is can be done using the Zoom Window (ZOOWIN) command or by using the Home and Page Down keys to center and zoom in to the area.
a. NOTE: If using ZOOWIN, you will need to end the ZOOWIN command before continuing to the next step.
7. Select the “Place Seam” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “4 Place Seam” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a new MenuKeys dialog that provides options for collecting the seam line.
8. In graphics Window 1, position the cursor at the location where you want the seam line to begin, and press button 1 to digitize a point. A rubber-band line should be displayed from the point selected to the current cursor location.
9. Continue to use button 1 to digitize points along the seam line. Use the Zoom commands to zoom in and out as needed. You will notice that as each new point is added to the seam line, the image display changes to reflect how them images will be merged along the seam line. Use option “3 Backup” if you place a point in the wrong location.
10. If you are digitizing a large line, and there are many images in the project, the image update process may take a few second each time a new point is digitized. If this is the case, use “9 Tog Update”, to toggle the instant update feature off and on. Using this method you can digitize several points with update off, then turn update back on to see the results.
11. The Mosaic application will normally determine the direction (horizontal or vertical), and the image sides (left,right,top,bottom) for the seam line. In some cases, you may need to change the default settings. This can be done using options 6-8 on the MenuKeys dialog. Each seam line has one direction associated with it, either horizontal or vertical. Each seam has two sides associated with it, one for each image or strip that it divides. A common situation where seam line direction and side may need to be changed manually is when you are placing seam lines along the edge of the project where there is no adjoining image or strip.
12. After all points have been digitized, select “4 End” from the MenuKeys dialog to end and save the seam line. The previous MenuKeys dialog will be displayed, and the next two strips will be highlighted.
13. Repeat this process starting with step 5 until at least two strip to strip seam lines have been placed. The goal is to have one strip of images with a seam line on both sides of the strip.
4.1.2. Collecting image to image seam lines
In this section of the tutorial, you will collect seam lines between all of the images in a strip.
1. Make sure the Open Seams MenuKeys dialog is displayed. If not, then Select the “Place Seams” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “1 Place Seams” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a new MenuKeys dialog, and the VrMosaic Place Seams Steps dialog. The layout window will highlight the active strips or images.
2. Make sure the status for step 1 (Toggle Seam Mode) in the VrMosaic Place Seams dialog displays “Between Images”. If not, press the “Toggle Seam Mode” button, or select “3 Tog Seam Mode” from the MenuKeys dialog.
3. You should see image borders for all active images in the Layout window. If not, type “ZOOA” in the command prompt area, and the select anywhere in the Layout window.
4. Two images should be surrounded with a dashed highlight line in the Layout window. If not, point to and select the first image in the image strip. The image strip should already have a seam line on both sides from the step 4.1.1. The first image should now be highlighted along with the next image. If the next image is not highlighted, point to and select the second image using button 2.
5. Make sure the status for step 2 (Select Images/Strips) in the VrMosaic Place Seams dialog displays the two image numbers that you intend to place a seam line between. If not, follow the instructions in the previous step.
6. In graphics window 1, zoom in close to one end of the image, and near the middle of the overlap area between the images. This is can be done using the Zoom Window (ZOOWIN) command or by using the Home and Page Down keys to center and zoom in to the area.
7. NOTE: If using ZOOWIN, you will need to end the ZOOWIN command before continuing to the next step.
8. Select the “Place Seam” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “4 Place Seam” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a new MenuKeys dialog that provides options for collecting the seam line.
9. Select “0 Tog Snap” (or F11) to turn snap mode on. Verify that snap settings are set to snap to line points.
10. In graphics Window 1, position the cursor at the location where you want the seam line to begin, and press button 1 to digitize a point on the existing strip to strip seam line.
11. If snap verify is on, then accept the snap point (assuming it found appoint in the existing strip to strip seam line).
12. A rubber-band line should be displayed from the point selected to the current cursor location.
13. Continue to use button 1 to digitize points along the seam line. Use the Zoom commands to zoom in and out as needed. You will notice that as each new point is added to the seam line, the image display changes to reflect how them images will be merged along the seam line. Use option “3 Backup” if you place a point in the wrong location.
14. If you are digitizing a large line, and there are many images in the project, the image update process may take a few second each time a new point is digitized. If this is the case, use “9 Tog Update”, to toggle the instant update feature off and on. Using this method you can digitize several points with update off, then turn update back on to see the results.
15. The Mosaic application will normally determine the direction (horizontal or vertical), and the image sides (left,right,top,bottom) for the seam line. In some cases, you may need to change the default settings. This can be done using options 6-8 on the MenuKeys dialog. Each seam line has one direction associated with it, either horizontal or vertical. Each seam has two sides associated with it, one for each image or strip that it divides. A common situation where seam line direction and side may need to be changed manually is when you are placing seam lines along the edge of the project where there is no adjoining image or strip.
16. As you approach the other side the image, you will need to use the “0 Tog Snap” option to turn snap mode on, and snap to a point on the existing strip to strip seam line. You should now have a line that runs along the length of the overlap area between the two images, and begins and ends at points on the existing strip to strip seam lines.
17. After snapping the final point, select “4 End” from the MenuKeys dialog to end and save the seam line. The previous MenuKeys dialog will be displayed, and the next two images in the strip will be highlighted.
18. Repeat this process starting with step 5 until seam lines for all images in the strip have been placed.
19. Select “# End” on the Open Seam MenuKeys dialog to return the the Main MenuKeys dialog.
20. Select “4 Tog preview” to view how the entire strip looks with all images cut to the seam lines.
NOTE 1: It may be helpful to temporarily turn off the seam line layer (Ex. LAYOFF 1) when viewing the image preview.
NOTE 2: Image preview mode does reflect seam line feathering. This is only done in the final output stage.
Finished seams
for two image strips. Layout view shows area that will be cut from each image.
4.2. Collecting using closed seams (polygon mode)
In this section of the tutorial, you will collect a closed seam line around a feature in a single image.
1. Select “8 Polygon Mode” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display the Closed Seams MenuKeys dialog. The layout window will highlight the active image.
2. You should see image borders for all active images in the Layout window. If not, type “ZOOA” in the command prompt area, and the select anywhere in the Layout window.
3. One of the images should be surrounded with a dashed highlight line in the Layout window. If this is not the image you want to place a seam line on, then point to and select another image using button 1 in the layout window.
4. In graphics window 1, zoom in close to the area where you will place the seam line. This is can be done using the Zoom Window (ZOOWIN) command or by using the Home and Page Down keys to center and zoom in to the area.
NOTE 1: Closed seam lines represent areas of the image that will be used in the final mosaic output. You may cut out multiple areas of a single image and force them to be used in the final output. This may be needed if you have a feature that would normally not be used from an image because it is discarded by the normal open seam line, but you want to force the feature to display.
NOTE 2: If using ZOOWIN, you will need to end the ZOOWIN command before continuing to the next step.
5. Select the “Place Seam” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “4 Place Seam” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display a new MenuKeys dialog that provides options for collecting the seam line.
6. In graphics Window 1, position the cursor at the location where you want the seam line to begin, and press button 1 to digitize a point. A rubber-band line should be displayed from the point selected to the current cursor location.
7. Continue to use button 1 to digitize points along the seam line. Use the Zoom commands to zoom in and out as needed. Because this is a closed seam line you will notice that once 3 points have been digitized, the display automatically shows a closing line going back to the first point. Point. Use option “3 Backup” if you place a point in the wrong location.
8. After all points have been digitized (there is no need to snap back to the first point), select “4 End” from the MenuKeys dialog to end and save the seam line. The previous MenuKeys dialog will be displayed, and the next image will be highlighted.
9. Repeat this process as many times as needed starting with step 3.
A single closed polygon has
been added to upper left corner of an image. The layout shows that the image
data will be taken from this image.
5. Editing seam lines
In this section of the tutorial, you will use the seam line editing tools to make changes to existing seam lines.
5.1. Editing using standard mode
In this section of the tutorial, you will use the standard seam line editing tool to make changes to an existing seam line. The standard mode for editing seam lines is very similar to using the VrOne Edit Line (EDILIN) command. In fact, you can use EDILIN to edit seam lines in VrOne or in VrMosaic without having the Mosaic application running. Using the standard mode editing tool built into the Mosaic application provide the added benefit of a real time image preview, along with the ability to move common points that are shared by multiple seam lines.
1. Select “2 Edit Seams” from the Main MenuKeys dialog (this is the first dialog displayed when staring the Mosaic application).
2. Point to an existing seam line graphics Window 1, and press button 1 (Id Seam). The cursor should snap to the nearest seam line point, and the Edit Seams MenuKeys dialog will be displayed.
3. Use the options displayed in the MenuKeys dialog to edit the line. Try moving points, deleting points, and inserting points. If you have used the Edit Line application in VrOne, then you will be familiar with how this operation works. As the points are changed, the display will be refreshed to show how the images are affected by the new seam line location.
4. When you are finished editing the line, select “# End” (F12), to save the edited line and return to the previous MenuKeys dialog.
5. You can now go back to Step 2 and repeat this process for other seam lines.
5.2. Editing using dynamic mode
In this section of the tutorial, you will use the dynamic seam line editing tool to make changes to an existing seam line. In dynamic mode you don’t identify a single seam line to edit as in standard mode. Instead, handles are displayed on all lines and point may be moved deleted or inserted at any time in a very intuitive manner. When the cursor is over a point handle, it will become solid. At this point you can press button 1 to move the point or button 2 to delete the point. If the cursor is not over a point handle, then the nearest line segment will be highlighted. While a line segment is highlighted, any press of button one will insert a new point onto that line segment at the current cursor location.
1. Select “2 Edit Seams” from the Main MenuKeys dialog (this is the first dialog displayed when staring the Mosaic application).
2. Select “2 Dynamic Edit” from the Edit Seam MenuKeys dialog. All point handles will be calculated and displayed (there may be a delay at this point if you are working on a large project).
3. Zoom in near a seam line so that you can see detailed image data.
4.
Place the cursor over a point that is
shared by multiple seam lines. The 1st MenuKeys item should change
to read “1 Move Pt”, and the second MenuKeys item (2
5. Press button 1 to begin moving the point. The Move Point MenuKeys dialog will be displayed. This dialog has options for adding multiple points to the move group. For this tutorial we will just move a single point.
6. Move the cursor to a new location and press button 1. You should see that all seam lines that shared the common point are now changed to reflect the new point location. The image data is also changed to reflect the new seam line location. The Edit Seam MenuKeys dialog should now be displayed.
7. Place the cursor near the middle of a seam line segment, make sure it is not over an existing point handle. The closest seam line to the cursor should now be highlighted.
8. Press button 1 to insert a point at the cursor location. You should see that the seam line segment is changed to include new point. The image data is also changed to reflect the latest seam line data.
9.
Place the cursor over the new point that was just
added. The 1st MenuKeys
item should change to read “1 Move Pt”, and the second MenuKeys item (2
10. Press button 2 to delete the point. You should see that the seam line segment is changed to remove the deleted point. The image data is also changed to reflect the latest seam line data.
6. Creating final mosaics
In this section of the tutorial, you will create the final output mosaic images.
6.1. Output using manual mode
In this section of the tutorial, you will create a single output image using manual mode. Manual mode allows you to manually select the bounds of a single output window. A new image will be written for the area selected.
1. Select the “Create Mosaics” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “5 Create Mosaics” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display the Output MenuKeys dialog.
2. Select “1 Manual” from the MenuKeys dialog.
3. In graphics Window 1, digitize the lower left corner of the output window.
4. In graphics Window 2, digitize the upper right corner of the output window. As you drag the cursor to select the upper right window corner, the VrMosaic main window status area will display the output image pixel dimensions and file size. The file size is only approximate, and reflects the raw size before compression. A confirmation MenuKeys dialog will be displayed. The VrMosaic main window status area will display the name of the Output File that will be created.
5. Select “1 Accept” to begin creating the output image. If the project settings are set for Image Balancing, then the images will be balanced first. The graphics window will display a moving scanline from the top to the bottom of the output area as a status indicator. When the output image is complete the VrMosaic main window status area will display the time it took to create the image. The Output MenuKeys dialog will display again, ready for a new output area to be selected (the same file will be overwritten unless the output file name is changed).
NOTE: Having feather mode on can add significantly to the processing time.
6.2. Output using batch mode
In this section of the tutorial, you will create a multiple output images using batch mode. Batch mode requires that a sheet layout exist in the current VrOne seam file. We will walk through the sheet layout procedure before continuing to the output steps.
6.2.1. Creating a sheet layout
In this section of the tutorial, you will create a sheet layout to be used by the Batch Output mosaic process. Sheet borders will be placed in Layer 2, and Sheet names will be placed in Layer 3 (the default layers in a new project). The grid command wil be used to make the placement of the sheets easier.
1. Select Graphics->Set Grid Resolution from the pull down menu or type in SETGRI in the command prompt. This will display the Grid Parameters dialog box.
2. Type in 500.0 for a grid resolution.
3. Set grid type to points.
4. Set the grid display to On.
5. Press OK to close the grid display dialog.
6. The Graphics window should show display grid points every 500.0 ground units.
7. Select Insert->Line from the pull down menu or type in INSLIN in the command prompt. This will start the Insert Line command.
8. Type in SETLAY 2 in the command prompt area. This sets the target layer to 2, which is default layer for sheet borders.
9. Using the grid points as a guide (the cursor will automatically snap to the grid), use Insert Line to digitize a square sheet in graphics window 1. Make the sheet the size you would use in a typical project.
10. Select “# End” to end the Insert Line command.
11. Select Edit->Edit Line from the pull down menu or type in EDILIN in the command prompt. This will start the Edit Line command.
12. Select the upper left hand corner of the sheet line that was just placed.
13. Select “6 Line Functions” from the MenuKeys dialog.
14. Select “4 Copy Line” from the MenuKeys dialog.
15. Place copies of the sheet line next to each other. Place as many copies as needed to cover the output area with sheets. Having the grid points on will ensure that the sheets line up perfectly.
16. End the Edit Line command.
17. Select Insert->Text from the pull down menu or type in INSTEX in the command prompt. This will start the Insert Text command. This will be used to place sheet name labels for each sheet that was defined in the previous steps.
18. Select “7 Enter Params” from the MenuKeys dialog. The Text Parameters dialog will be displayed.
19. Set the Layer to 3, which is the default layer for sheet names.
20. Set the width and height to large value such as 40.0 (the exact size will depend on the sheet sizes that were defined, but it should be large enough to be seen while viewing the sheet from an overview level).
21. Set the Justification X and Y to center. This is not necessary, but it makes it easier to position the text in the center of the sheets.
22. Set the Text value to SHEET1.TIF.
23. Press the “Ok” button to close the Text Parameters dialog.
24. Digitize a location in the center of one of the existing sheets. This should place the text label “SHEET1.TIF” in the center of the sheet.
25. Either use “7 Enter Params” to change the sheet name to the next number (SHEET2.TIF), or type in txt=SHEET2.TIF.
26. Digitize a location in the center of the next sheet.
27. Repeat steps 25 and 26 until all sheets have a unique sheet name label inside them.
6.2.2. Selecting sheets to output
In this section of the tutorial, you will select the sheets to output based on the sheet layout that has already been defined.
1. Select the “Create Mosaics” button on the VrMosaic Main Steps dialog, or select “5 Create Mosaics” from the MenuKeys dialog. This will display the Output MenuKeys dialog.
2. Select “2 Batch” from the MenuKeys dialog. A dialog will be displayed providing information about the layers to be searched for sheet borders and sheet names.
3. Press the “Yes” button to continue. A new dialog will be displayed showing all of the sheets borders that were found along with the sheet names associatied with each one.
4. Place a check mark beside each sheet that you want to be created.
5. Press the “Ok” button to begin creating the output images. If the project settings are set for Image Balancing, then the images will be balanced first. The graphics window will display a moving scanline from the top to the bottom of the sheet output area as each sheet is created. After the sheets have been created, the Main MenuLeys dialog will be displayed.
NOTE: Having feather mode on can add significantly to the processing time.