OxTS has introduced the POS file format in order to make it easier for our customers to use the data that is measured by our system. The POS file format is used by many applications to geo-reference LIDAR or vision data. Programs such as Riegl’s RiWorld use this format to read the position and orientation format from an inertial navigation system. It allows RiWorld to convert the range and bearing measurements from the laser to Latitude, Longitude and Altitude.
The POS file format is a space separated file with the following fields:
- TimeOfDay, number of seconds since the beginning of the day in UTC time
- Latitude in decimal degrees
- Longitude in decimal degrees
- Altitude in metres
- Roll in degrees
- Pitch in degrees
- Heading in degrees
The convention for the Euler angles in the POS file is the same as the normal convention used by OxTS. An example of the file’s data is shown below.
The POS file format export functionality has been tested with RiWorld. The data was collected using a Riegl Q120i laser scanner on a light aircraft by one of our customers, Bob Kletzli of Geo Info Technologies. The image shows a runway. The straight edges show that the angles and timing are correct in the file. The runway was surveyed from both directions so that the alignment between the RT3003 and the Q120i could be corrected.
