Import custom .prj and define local coordinate systems in Pix4Dmatic

PIX4Dmatic PIX4Dmatic Feature Request
1

How can I add local coordinate systems in Pix4dmatic? I have attached links to a few in AutoCAD and on spatial reference.

9103.prj (556 Bytes)

image
image693Ă—652 23.5 KB

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Hi @kwinslow,

At the moment, it is not possible to import a .prj in Pix4Dmatic. It is only possible to use coordinate systems that are already defined in the database Pix4Dmatic is using.

I forwarded your message to the team in order to consider adding this feature in future versions.

Best,

3

Taking this a step further I would like to see:

1.) Import CSV for the image geotags. This allows customization for local coordinate systems.
2.) Bring over the .PRJ import function.
3.) JXL import for local calibrations for Trimble users.

These 3 functions would make local projections a breeze. Glad to see the geoids are in there now!

3 Likes
4

Hi @jack.wilcox, could you share an example of a .prj file that you would like to import?

Best,

5

@jack.wilcox since your last post we have added the import of .csv/.txt files for image geotags. Your feedback on the .PRJ import would be valuable to understand what you would like to achieve and why the current solution doesn’t fit. If you could provide an example dataset (images, GCPs, .PRJ,…) where this would apply, it would be perfect! Thanks!

6

@Pierangelo_Rothenbuhler The import CSV was by far the most important that is super exciting. I will try to process a set with custom localized geotags if there is an arbitrary coordinate system selection like there is in Mapper.

The PRJ import function I found to be more of a pain and inconsistent so I would disregard that request.

I use Trimble Business Center to take Site Calibration Files(JXL,DC,JOB) from people who have site-specific coordinate systems for their projects. Then I convert the geotags in TBC into those local grid coordinates along with the checkpoints. Then process everything in Arbitrary in Pix4D. I can unbeatable accuracy using this method.

If Pix4D had a universal import function for these Site Cal Files then it would save a lot of conversion steps with the images because all the user would have to do is go into their survey SW export the calibration file and Pix4D takes care of the rest.

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@Pierangelo_Rothenbuhler My method is a bit hacky, but what Winslow is getting at is in Minnesota they have county coordinates which are more localized regions than state plane coordinates.

He can go into the AutoCad or Coordinate System Manager software to export a PRJ file that has the transformation properties. So if Pix4D doesn’t have the selection for these localized systems then the user would benefit greatly from having an import function in Pix4D.

In a nutshell:
-I am a survey guy who uses stuff not selectable in Pix4D because I like my own coordinate systems
-I have a survey SW that can export files that act as a deciphering key (PRJ, JXL, DC, GC3)
-I want to stick that key into Pix4D so it can take my WGS84 images and unlock the door to transforming the outputs into my custom grid and have that function for reading the custom checkpoint file.

This is like a design your own T-Shirt function

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@pix4d_usd [quote=“pix4d_usd, post:6, topic:15728”]
The import CSV was by far the most important that is super exciting. I will try to process a set with custom localized geotags if there is an arbitrary coordinate system selection like there is in Mapper.
[/quote]

Great to hear! You can find some more information on how to proceed in these articles:

ok, well noted. Would you happen to have an example project where all these files would be available? That would enable us to have a reference dataset to know how to implement and test that.

My understanding is that the import of Site Calibration Files (JXL,DC,JOB) would do the trick and is equivalent to a PRJ import, or is the PRJ a special case here? Just to know if we’d need to support all of them, or if one of them would be sufficient.

My understanding is that the goal of these files is to easily transform the input images into the same coordinate system as the site, so that one gets better accuracy on the reconstruction. Also, having these “keys” available, would make it more straightforward and would remove an additional step that has to be done in third party software at the moment, which is to transform all the coordinates and then import them to PIX4Dmatic.

Thanks again for the feedback!

EDIT: also wanted to mention that we added the support of a large list of ESRI coordinate systems, this should help for some cases too.

9

I just had the chance to Demo Pix4DMatic, and though I like what I see the inability to define custom coordinate systems via a .prj file is a deal breaker. Working in the high mountains of Colorado necessitates the use of these custom coordinates systems to resolve elevation scale factor issues. As a professional land surveyor utilizing M300 RTK P1 drones and Trimble R12 receivers the last thing I want to have to do is hack a project together with an arbitrary (none) coordinate system. Being able to have my images imported via (geographic) wgs84 exif tags and my GCP (local) coordinates lying within cm of the GCP target on the map via and advanced coordinate option like import via .prj is much cleaner. This feature exists in Pix4DMapper and works outstandingly, I do not understand for the life of me why its not in Pix4DMatic. I was really hoping that Pix4DMatic and Pix4DSurvey would streamline my workflow into one ecosystem. Unfortunately until an import from prj coordinate system option is implemented this software will be of little use to myself and clients.

10

Hi @chip

Thanks for the feedback, we’re taking your comment into account for our Coordinate Reference Systems related roadmap. We do aim at making sure your workflow can be streamlined in PIX4Dmatic and PIX4Dsurvey too. If there were any other things you are missing in PIX4Dmatic, please feel free to create other community posts, so that we are aware of what you are looking for.

Thanks!

11

Just wondering if anyone has a work around to get a .prj file into an output coordinate system for a Pix4D project?

I am fairly new to Pix4D and not sure how to get my data to a local coordinate system with only a .prj projection file. Thanks for any input!

12

Nevermind! I found where you can import .prj files. Under Known coordinate system>Advanced Coordinate options>Import PRJ.

Thank you guys for adding this!

13

I have been a user of pix4d since 2016, and with a perpetual license and currently I would like to upgrade to pix4dmatic. I just saw in this post that files with a .prj extension cannot be imported for cartographic projection systems. I would like to know if this has already been solved because otherwise it would not be useful for me to buy this product. Thank you very much

14

@mmemolli2007 thanks for commenting. We do not have the .prj file import yet BUT we have many coordinate reference systems supported that were not supported in PIX4Dmapper. Can you please clarify for what coordinate reference systems you need to import a .prj file? More information on your need will help us solve it in the best way possible. Thanks!

15

Hello,

A quick note that this feature has been implemented and is now available to test on the PIX4Dmatic preview version 1.38.0 available for download now.

Let us know if it works as expected :slight_smile:

Regards,
-Jon

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