In any large trade show, such as the ESRI User's Conference, it is
easy to get numbed by the variety of vendors, the repeat technology,
and even some of the eye candy that vendors use to get you to saunter
by their booth.In spite of the size and sheer overwhelming number of
exhibitors at a show where there are over 12,000 attendees,
Editor-in-chief Joe Francica, and Senior Contributing Editor Hal Reid,
found five technologies that stood out and easily passed the WOW
Factor test.
WOW Product #1 Touch Table Northrop-Grumman Mission Systems 14330 Sullyfield circle Chantilly, VA 20151 www.northopgrumman,com 703-633-2805
On board are drawing tools that let the user(s) create a redline, or fill an area of interest.The table can be used with ESRI's ArcGlobe with zoom, pan and rotate controls on the table.Because a computer drives the table, motion can be displayed as data becomes available.One of the really fascinating things to watch was ho the operators would press firmly on an image feature and retrieve information on that feature to a separate screen display. |
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Touch Table showing Menu Items |
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Touch Table - (Graphic provided by Northrup Grumman) |
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Watch a short video of the table in action... click on graphic |
WOW Product #2 XenoVision Mark III Xenotran 898 Airport Park Rd. Glen Burnie, MD 21061 www.xenotran.com 410-761-2445 The XenoVision Mark III is a table that is three feet by four feet, 29 inches high and consists of a number of aluminum rods that lift a latex sheet to form a three-dimensional model of a physical landscape.Their vision, as stated in their brochure, is to provide the same tools, as in the movie "X-Men" for mission planning and visualization.Overhead is a projector displaying a computer image on the table itself.Because it is electronic it takes just minutes for the table to reconfigure the topography to reflect the image from the projector.The latex on the table is pure white, allowing for an accurate reflection of the image projected upon it.A vacuum beneath the table, pulls the aluminum rods down based on the input from the terrain data. This makes a true "situation" display possible and can show motion, imagery and maps, and can be used for military, homeland security and as well as site selection and market penetration.It also allows for a realistic viewshed projection, which can be used for the defense of motorcades, line-of-sight, or signage and location visibility.
Specifications
Below are three images of the table mechanism and the terrain it can display.Very cool. |
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Click for larger image |
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Table Configuration - Courtesy of Xenotran |
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Terrain Data Projected with latex cover over aluminum rods - Courtesy of Xenotran |
WOW Product #3 3D Printer Z Corporation 20 North Ave. Burlington, MA 01803 www.zcorp.com 781-852-5005
Z Corporation has taken a traditionally non-GIS tool and
made and very short leap into persistent 3D rendering.
Their product is a 3D printer that is normally used in the
modeling of parts and assemblies.It can provide tangible
output from traditional products that do 3D design for
manufacturing as well as 3D GIS output.
Also see the propeller demo at by clicking
here.For GIS, it works like this: It looks like a flat bed plotter except instead of merely placing ink on paper, this device places a powder that is infused with colored ink and a liquid to effect hardening (binding) of the powder.Each pass over the flatbed produces a layer of powder.Where there would normally be print on paper, ink infused powered is placed in layers.Up to 90 layers are used to create a plot of any of several sizes.The demo device was producing approximately 12" by 18".When the plot has finished, compressed air removes the un-infused powder and the 3D contours, in color appear.What is especially cool is that the output is not limited to a solid object.It can be a true representation of a part. |
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Printer in action |
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Example of the output - Courtesy of Z Corporation |
WOW Product #4 Holographic Displays Zebra Imaging, Inc P.O.Box 81247 Austin, TX 78708 www.zebraimaging.com 512-251-5100 ex 128 Zebra imaging does holographic displays for the following functions;
For years, I have wanted real-time holographic displays instead of huge heavy CRTs or LCD monitors.Perhaps, we are getting close. |
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Image courtesy of Zebra Imaging, Inc. |
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Image courtesy of Zebra Imaging, Inc. |
WOW Product #5 MobileMapper Thales Navigation 471 El Camino Real Santa Clara, CA 95050 www.thalesnavigation.com 408-615-5100 |
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Thales introduced MobileMapper(TM) CE, a handheld GPS
receiver for GIS and many other data collection
applications.It is extremely affordability and the
"ruggedized", waterproof casing a nice touch.
Priced lower than competing systems, the MobileMapper CE
GPS receiver offers an impressive array of
high-performance features, including real-time, sub-meter
GPS positioning, embedded Microsoft(R) Windows(R) CE .NET,
Bluetooth(R) wireless technology, removable SD card memory
and an all-day removable battery that make it attractive
for a wide variety of demanding GIS data collection and
mapping applications.
Read more.
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In summary... What does this all mean to the average GIS professional? It means that these technologies are the forerunner of the war room concepts businesses may seek in competitive analysis as well as an ability to create tangible models for urban planning visualization. |