For this scenario, we didn't create any specific workspaces. We rather created a list of requirements based on our vision of a desirable user experience. Here are some of these requirements:


"Viewing and inspecting point clouds should be comfortable and informative, that is:"


1. "Visualization should be quick and easy" - We definitely made some progress with the visualization speed - instead of 20 minutes, a point cloud consisting of ~6,000,000 points can be shown in less than a minute. Once the point cloud is loaded, we can comfortably navigate through it in both 2D and 3D modes, which was impossible in FME 2010.


2. "The picture should allow easily distinguish between different parts of the cloud" - In FME 2011 we use only basic coloring techniques. If a point cloud has color component, it will be used for visualization:



If the point cloud has intensity component, it will use rainbow coloring with intensity also applied to each point:



If there is no color component on the points, setting fme_color overwrites rainbow coloring scheme and colors the point cloud according to user input:



In future releases we want to add more coloring options, and your feedback on that is much appreciated - send us an e-mail with you thoughts (support@safe.com or dmitri.bagh@safe.com).


3. "All available information about point cloud and individual points should be easily accessible" - For accessing information about point cloud, we use our raster approach - clicking on a single point returns its XYZ and available components, such as intensity, time, return number, etc:



Selecting an area gives information about the whole cloud - its bounds, projection, number of point, etc: