On October 12th 2012, TC5D was released by the company Adtollo. A web interface that allows you to easily view and spin your maps and point clouds in 3D, directly in your web browser. In addition to the three dimensions there are two more; time and relation.
TC5D mixes all kind of positioning data on the web, vectors, rasters, point clouds, terrain models and others.
Adtollo develops software for mapping, design and GIS, and Topocad is the most well-known product. This Monday, TC5D was launched, representing Topocad Collaborator 5 Dimensions. Topocad contains the CAD functions while TC5D’s focus is on fast and modern publishing and distribution of map data. TC5D helps the user to visualize the map to the public, the project team, the client or anyone else. Everyone who needs to publish and distribute location-based data is a potential user of TC5D.
What do five dimensions mean?
We are all familiar with three dimensions, but what about four or five dimensions? “The fourth dimension in TC5D is time: The user is able to look at the map: what it looked like in the past, what it looks like now and also what is to come” says Tomas Sandström, director of Surveying & Mapping department at Adtollo, and continues: "Relation is the fifth dimension, and here we are talking about a relation between objects. For example, let’s say you have a pole and a road center in a map: move the road and the pole will follow. But the pole can be moved without the road following".
Can you publish point clouds in TC5D?
"Yes, point clouds can be used and displayed in TC5D. Scan of, create a topographic model and publish it directly in the software. Vectors, raster images (regular photos and ortophotos) and terrain models are other types of data that can be published on the web" says Tomas Sandström.
Do I need Topocad for upload?
"No you don’t. It is possible to upload all kinds of data from many different file formats such as dwg, shape, dgn, xml and others. But with Topocad it is of course easier, just a save button, and today the only option to download data is thru Topocad."
Are there any other functions?
At the moment there are functions for showing object properties from the database. You can ask for all attributes in the database. There are also a measure command that measures distances in three dimensions. But the good thing is that we have made an API so you can develop the functionality yourself.
How about security?
Data is stored in a database on the server and you use six different levels of users, from administrators to public. f you publish data – the data is viewable for everyone that can reach the web page. But if data isn’t published those who have a login to the system will be able to see their part of the map.
How is TC5D purchased?
You can rent a space from our server and upload data to this server or you can purchase the installation and run it on your server. Resellers and distributors are also welcome to set up their own system.
Can I run the program in my browser?
"As a user, it is a web page, no application. You start and run TC5D directly in your Internet Browser. The software is built on the latest technology, WebGL. It is developed for web platforms and associated with HTML5. The technique allows you to rotate and view 3D map without a plug-in. This means you can run TC5D in your browser without having to install anything on your computer" concludes Tomas Sandström.
Read the article on the web: http://www.mynewsdesk.com/se/pressroom/adtollo/pressrelease/view/publish-maps-and-point-clouds-on-the-web-in-five-dimensions-800572
More information and images: http://adtollo.se/en/surveying-mapping/products/tc5d/