At Geo Week, the coming together of the International Lidar Mapping Forum, SPAR 3D and AEC Next, three innovative solutions, and one notable project were chosen as the winners of the Pitch the Press event. The latest products from NavVis, Avatour and Prostar GeoCorp were chosen from 16 of presentations that were pitched rapid-fire to a panel of high-profile press representatives at Geo Week. These solutions represent the cutting edge in reality capture, collaborative work and visualization tools.
Reality capture company NavVis demonstrated the utility of their wearable mobile mapping system, NavVis VLX. The NavVis VLX is a mobile mapping system designed for reality capture in AEC, enabling quick, high-quality captures to be performed on foot in only a few minutes. Up to ten times faster than a terrestrial laser scanner, the NavVis VLX and can be operated by field personnel with little training required. Backed by NavVis’ precision SLAM, this versatile system is a stand out for its unique approach to reality capture workflows.
Avatour offers a platform for virtual collaboration, but rather than focusing on limited video conferencing, have built a tool that harnesses real-time 360° video to bring together teams that are remotely located. The collaboration platform connects remote users with the full context of a real-world location, enabling more effective virtual inspections, trainings, site visits and other yet to be realized applications. The cloud-based service uses off-the-shelf hardware to provide full-motion 360° real-time communication connected via a web browser. For meetings where visualizing the place and surroundings is as important as seeing one’s colleagues Avatour rises to meet that need.
ProStar GeoCorp brought their precision mapping solution, PointMan. The primary application of the tool is to solve a particularly challenging problem, visualizing underground utilities and assets that may only have disconnected and out-of-date records. PointMan's mobile app allows users to connect their mobile device (Android/IOS) with major GPS/GNSS, cable, & pipe locating equipment manufacturers to capture mission critical infrastructure data with unprecedented precision that includes; type, depth, accuracy, depth of cover, and precise geospatial location. PointMan can also create and bind forms, sketches, and photos to any point, line, or polygon and works in unison with mobile devices in order to display captured meta-data into a reliable mobile mapping software, all from the palm of your hand.
In addition to the innovative products spotlighted above, the jury would also like to recognize a unique effort presented among the pitches. The Earth Archive Initiative is a US-based non-profit focused on 3D scanning the planet’s surface to create an open-sourced digital twin of the planet’s most threatened areas. This effort uses lidar technology to capture these areas, capturing details of vegetation and the ground beneath it in three dimensions from the vantage point of a plane, helicopter, or drone. The Earth Archive hopes to serve both as a record of the state of the planet as it exists now, to help scientists better understand how it is changing, and as a “virtual planet” that can serve as a precious gift for future generations.
Pitch the Press is a unique opportunity for exhibitors to present their products to a group of editors and reporters looking for the most unique new technologies on display at Geo Week. Sixteen exhibiting companies opted to share their new product or service during the one-hour event. Each exhibitor gave a 2 minute brief to members of the media, followed by a one-minute Q&A.
"With over 140 geospatial and built world technology solutions providers exhibiting at Geo Week, there is no shortage of innovation at this event,” said Jeremiah Karpowicz, Executive Editor at Diversified Communications. “Seeing just a handful of them quickly highlight where and how these innovations can make a difference was instructive to our selected panel of journalists, who chose three products that can create value in multiple industries."
Pitch the Press provides attendees a sense of what products can be further explored Geo Week exhibit floor, which contains more than 140 exhibitors from around the world. Understanding the opportunities that companies like Avatour, NavVis and ProStar GeoCorp are creating is just the beginning of where and how their respective industries will advance.
The “Pitch the Press” judging panel included Dawn Zoldi, Founder and CEO of P3 Tech Consulting LLC, Jason San Souci, Drone Scientist and Host of Do You Know Drones? Podcast, Todd Danielson, Editorial Director of Informed Infrastructure, and Carla Lauter, Editorial Analyst for Geo Week News.
