Motivation

The aim of the MoDiTa project is to replace the human eye with a high-quality industrial camera when using a total station in certain cases. In the case of MoDiTa 3.0, a software and hardware redesign enables the future-proof use of a large number of current USB industrial cameras with the MoDiTa measuring system for high-frequency and non-contact surveying work.

Activities

A software and hardware redesign mark the start of the MoDiTa 3.0 project, which will seamlessly follow the intensive scientific work on the Methods and Algorithms of an Imaging Total Station (MoDiTa 2.0) at the beginning of 2024. This will make current CMOS sensors easy to use for application-related and experimental measurement projects, e.g. for the precise detection of the smallest building movements and vibrations.

The software redesign will enable the alternative use of the GenICam-compliant API IDS Peak from January 2024. IDS Peak is fully based on the vision standards of the EMVA (GenICam) and the AIA (GigE Vision, USB3 Vision), IDS peak updates include the latest GenICam specifications. MoDiTa is developed in C#.NET, with the central tools Microsoft Visual Studio, Jetbrains Resharper, Github and the comprehensive machine vision software MVTec HALCON.

From mid-May 2024, the hardware redesign will not only enable a generally shorter design, but also the use of different S-mount eyepiece optics for the first time. This means that industrial cameras with very different sensor sizes and resolutions can be used in a targeted manner. From September 2024, the updated MoDiTa 3.0 system will enable prototypical research and development work to be carried out, including for use in final theses and project work.

The applicability of MoDiTa for automatic, image-based ATR targeting of passive target markers such as laser scanning checkerboard targets or reflective foil targets was successfully evaluated and delineated as part of Nele Kuhnen’s bachelor’s thesis.