4. Configuring the sensors

MISSIONPLANNER uses sensor parameters to calculate flight lines and trigger points.

After you create a project, you need to select a sensor or sensor system. You can also select multiple sensors.

Sensor selection:

1. In the Navigation bar, click .

   Important

   At the bottom of the secondary sidebar, click Update database to fetch all available sensors from TOPOFLIGHT’s online resources.

2. At the top of the sensor selection window, select a sensor type (for LiDAR, use RiParameter import).

   

3. In the corresponding menu, select the sensor brand.

4. Select the sensor model.

5. Select the configuration. This setting corresponds to the focal length for frame systems. On the right, the model and configuration parameters are automatically populated with the corresponding values.

6. Under Geometrical constraints, enter the required GSD (the GSD describes the spatial resolution or pixel size of an image on the ground). The HAGL is automatically calculated and the airplane height and sensor footprint are displayed on the right.

   Important

   The HAGL selected here is stored as default value for the project.

   The GSD is directly related to the HAGL and depends on the focal length of the selected camera.

7. If necessary, adjust the roll, pitch and yaw values. The depiction of the footprint changes accordingly.

8. Click to add the selected sensor to your project. The sensor now is listed in the secondary sidebar.

   Hint

   To include frequently used sensors in your preferred selection, simply click on beneath the FAVORITE SENSORS window in the secondary sidebar. The curated list of favorite sensors is displayed consistently across all projects.

4.1. Visualization of sensor settings

The depiction of the airplane in the main window provides an overview of the sensor settings on flat terrain.

Display settings

Use the parameters in Display settings in the main window to adjust different values.

Important

Changes to the HAGL will be transferred to the corresponding geometrical constraints in the camera settings.

Apart from the HAGL, you can modify the percentage of the forward and side overlap. The impact of these changes will be visible in the window above. This is particularly useful when working with sensor systems, as it allows for a comparison of the overlap for the nadir and oblique cameras. Please note that overlap estimation is only computed for almost parallel lines! The maximum intermediate angle for which overlaps will be calculated can be defined in the settings.

Geometrical constraints

The default geometric constraints are set with roll, pitch, and yaw angles at 0° for a forward orientation.

Applying changes to the angles:

1. Set the sensor orientation to

   • landscape (roll=0°) or

   • portrait (roll=90°).

   The system turns clockwise.

2. Adjust the pitch value. The value ranges between

   • pitch=0° (pointing to the horizon) and

   • pitch=-90° (pointing to nadir).

3. Enter the heading that applies the system:

   • yaw=0° (front)

   • yaw=90° (right)

   • yaw=180° (back)

   • yaw=270° (left)

Example for a system using roll=90° (portrait), pitch=-45° (oblique sensor) and yaw=270° (left):

4.2. Adding sensors to the database

Adding a new sensor:

1. In the Navigation bar, click and select the appropriate tab for your new sensor or sensor system.

2. In the top box, select an existing brand or click to create a new brand and enter the brand name.

3. In the middle box, select an existing model or click to create a new model and enter the model name.

4. In the lower box, click to add a new configuration and enter the configuration name.

5. Enter the required information for the new sensor in the dialog box located on the right.

Hint

Sensor information is always stored in the active project. If the project is shared across multiple MISSIONPLANNER installations, the software verifies the availability of sensor information in the database; if not found, it generates it.

4.3. Editing sensor information

The TOPOFLIGHT online database provides read-only information on brands, models and configurations. Upon element selection the edit button(s) will remain disabled.

Editing sensors:

1. Select a sensor (e.g. for which a new calibrated focal length is available).

2. Use to copy the sensor.

3. Save it under a different name.

4. Adjust the sensor parameters according to your needs.

4.4. Deleting sensors from the database

Important

This option is only available for user created elements.

Deleting sensor information:

1. Select the undesired user-generated sensor information in the configuration, model or brand box.

2. Delete the configuration/model/brand by clicking the symbol under the respective box.

4.5. Hidden sensors

Some sensor models do not appear in the list per default. These “hidden” sensors are part of a Multi-Sensor-System and are not sold as individual sensors. To access information from these sensors, users can toggle the SHOW HIDDEN SENSORS button located at the lower left corner of the page.

4.6. LiDAR - RiParameter import

The sensor parameters for Riegel’s LiDAR scanners are primarily optimized within the third-party application RiParameter.

The ini-export of this application can be imported by MISSIONPLANNER.

Importing RiParameter settings:

1. In RiParameter, use the ini-export to export the required parameters to a file.

2. In MISSIONPLANNER, go to the main page and select the LiDAR tab.

3. Click on the symbol located to the right of the section CONFIGURATION.

4. A dialog box opens in which the import files can be specified.