iGUIDE IMS-5 Operator's manual

IMS-5 Camera System
System and Software Documentation
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Revision 1.22

iGUIDE® IMS-5 Camera System:
System and Software Documentation
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Table of contents
Regulatory Information 3
Camera System Overview 4
Camera System Components 5
Camera Handling 6
Tripod Setup 6
Connecting to Camera 8
Collecting Data With Survey 9
Create a Project and Floor 10
Turn Laser ON 10
Shooting Panoramas 11
Getting Best Results From Auto Settings 12
Important Shooting Notes 12
Taking Still Pictures 14
Additional Shooting Tips 14
Summary of Survey Controls and Indicators 14
Summary of Manage Tab 16
Automatic Mapping Mode (Advanced) 18
Automatic Mapping Tips 19
Outdoor and Common Area Scans 20
Processing Data With Stitch 22
About iGUIDE Images 22
Stitch Workflow 23
User Interface 23
Project Tree View 23
Adding User Panoramas 25
Toolbar Buttons 25
Data Quality 30
Maintenance 34
Fisheye Lens Cleaning 34
Laser Scanner Optical Window Cleaning 34
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Compass Calibration 34
USB Flash Drive 35
Factory Reset 35
Firmware Update 35
Troubleshooting 35
Wi-Fi connectivity 35
Survey browser compatibility 36
Removing reflections in mirrors 36
Ball head drift 36
Miscellaneous Survey issues 36
Wrong camera rotation direction 36
Battery Charging 37
Specifications 38
Canon EOS Rebel T100 Menu Settings 39
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Regulatory Information
This product has been tested and was found to comply with the following standards:
· FCC PART 15, SUBPART B, Class B - Unintentional Radiators.
· Industry Canada ICES-003, Issue 6, Class B - Information Technology Equipment.
· CISPR 11:2009 + A1:2010 / EN 55011:2009 +A1:2010, Class B - Industrial, Scientific and Medical Equipment.
· EN 61326-1:2013 – Electrical Equipment for Measurement, Control and Laboratory Use - EMC Requirements, Part 1:
General Requirements.
This product includes a laser scanner which is a Class 1 laser product and complies with IEC 60825-1 2007-03 Ed. 2.0 and
21 CFR Subchapter J Parts 1040.10 and 1040.11 except for deviations pursuant to Laser Notice No. 50, dated June 24,
2007.
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this device
may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that
may cause undesired operation.
NOTE: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part 15
of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential
installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in
accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to
radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try
to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
· Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
· Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
· Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.
· Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
The product modifications not expressly approved by Planitar could void the user's authority to operate the equipment
under FCC rules.
This product includes a Wi-Fi USB adapter that has been evaluated to meet general RF exposure requirement. The device
can be used in portable exposure condition without RF restriction.
This product is Class B, Group 1 ISM equipment according to CISPR 11. Group 1 ISM product: A product in which there is
intentionally generated and/or used conductively coupled radio-frequency energy which is necessary for the internal
functioning of the equipment itself. Class B products are suitable for use in domestic establishments and in
establishments directly connected to a low voltage power supply network which supplies buildings used for domestic
purposes.
Contact Planitar at www.planitar.com or Planitar authorized distributor for product disposal information and product
take-back program.
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Camera System Overview
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The iGUIDE Camera System is a unique camera system that measures a space while
simultaneously photographing it.
Figure 1 shows the main components of the camera system. The camera system uses a laser
scanner for gathering laser measurement data and a DSLR camera with a fisheye lens for
shooting ultra wide-angle HDR images that are later stitched into 360-degree panoramas. The
scanner's laser is infra-red and is invisible. Each DSLR camera and lens assembly is factory
calibrated to allow accurate rectification of fisheye images and their alignment and stitching into
cubic panorama tiles. It is important to handle the camera with care to keep the alignment of the
optical assembly intact. The camera is not user serviceable and must not be disassembled or the
warranty will be void. The camera has a built-in Wi-Fi access point and you can connect to it from
any Wi-Fi enabled device. It is controlled by the Survey web app that runs in a web browser. Phones
and tablets with a 5-7 inch screen are most convenient for use with the camera.
Figure 1. Camera components.
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Camera System Components
The system controller is the black box on the side of the camera system. On top you will find the
power button used to turn the system on.
The system battery is located on the side of the camera directly opposite the system controller. It
doesn’t need to be removed to be charged and has a charge level indicator on top of the battery
itself.
The USB flash drive where all the data is stored is also plugged into the system controller. It is
located under the DSLR body.
The panoramic rotator is located at the bottom of the camera system and must be connected to a
tripod or quick release plate prior to shooting.
The bubble level can be seen on top of the DSLR body and is used to level the camera.
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Camera Handling
The camera should be handled by the panoramic rotator and can be additionally supported by a
grip onto the system controller. For lens cleaning, the camera can be placed on a table with the
fisheye lens facing up and the DSLR camera LCD screen facing down, see Figure 2.
The system battery and the DSLR camera battery must be charged before the first use. It is
convenient to charge the system battery while the camera is placed in the carrying case. The system
battery charging port is located at the bottom of the battery holder. Consult the Troubleshooting
section of this manual for the procedure for charging a completely discharged battery.
Figure 2. Camera handling.
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Tripod Setup
A tripod is not included with the camera and must be supplied by the user. A tripod with a ball head
is recommended to allow for easy leveling of the camera. It is also recommended to use a ball head
with a quick release (QR) plate for easy installation of the camera on the tripod. The camera weight
is 2.4 kg (5.2 lb). The center of gravity of the camera is offset from the panoramic rotator axis, so it
is recommended to use a ball head and a tripod with a load capacity of at least 5 kg (11 lb).
The tripod height should be adjusted so that the fisheye lens is about 120cm (4 ft) above the floor to
allow visually capturing the surfaces of kitchen counters and islands. Raising the camera too high
will cause capturing too much of a ceiling.
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It is recommended to extend the tripod column at least 10cm (4") to provide enough space for a
convenient hand grip, see Figure 3. Raising the column higher will result in too much sway of the
camera under its weight when the camera is rotated and will negatively affect quality of panorama
alignment and stitching.
A foam cushion disk is provided with the camera and can be installed on the tripod column
beneath the ball head and above the hand for a more comfortable grip.
Figure 3. Tripod handling.
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Connecting to Camera
The camera is powered on and off by the power button located the top of the system controller. The
camera boots in less than 10 seconds, so there is no Sleep mode.
After the power LED turns green, navigate to your phone or tablet Wi-Fi settings and connect to the
Access Point named planitar-xxxxxx, where xxxxxx is a unique code for each camera. The default
Wi-Fi password is p1234567.
After successful connection, open a web browser and type URL http://192.168.5.1 in the address
field. The browser will load the Survey web app that controls the camera. In the Survey app,
navigate to the Manage tab and change the default Wi-Fi password. It is also recommended to save
the Survey web app URL as a bookmark to your home screen for easy launching of Survey in full
screen mode.
You can access the camera's USB Flash drive over Wi-Fi from your Mac or PC desktop computer
once you connect to the camera from the desktop computer over Wi-Fi. Open Windows Explorer or
Mac Finder and browse the network for a computer named planitar-ims. If a login dialog is
presented, use login name guest with a blank password.
To conserve battery, the laser scanner will power off if there is no communication between Survey
and the camera for more than 2 minutes. Additionally, the camera system will power off
automatically if no user interaction occurs with the Survey app for 20 minutes. This default Power
Off timeout can be changed or completely disabled through the Manage tab in the Survey app.
To shoot panoramas you will also have to turn the DSLR power switch to the ON position.
IMPORTANT
• Do not leave a discharged system battery in the camera for long periods of time, e.g. for more than
a week with one bar of charge on the battery's LCD display. Completely charged battery can remain
in the camera for up to two years.
• Do not support the camera by holding onto the system battery.
• Do not unplug Wi-Fi USB dongle while the system is powered up.
• Do not unplug USB Flash drive until it is first Safely Removed in the Survey app or the system is
powered off.
• If using another USB Flash drive, ensure it is slim enough and can be inserted completely into the
USB connector. It is recommended to use USB3 drives for faster image writing speed.
• The system must be powered off when charging the system battery.
• The mode dial on the DSLR camera must always be set to the M position.
• Do not change DSLR camera menu settings from the values configured by Planitar.
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Collecting Data With Survey
The Survey user interface is shown in Figure 4. There are five tabs: Survey, Pano, Floor, Project,
and Manage. Each tab represents a separate screen and functions that can be returned to at any
time. Most of the time is spent working in the Survey tab than any other.
Figure 4. Survey tab.
Data collection for Planitar iGUIDEs involves using the camera to scan a property and capture
fisheye images in every room to create panoramas. The integrated laser scanner collects
measurement data for every room which forms a map of the space during the shooting of
panoramas. The camera is rotated manually on the panoramic rotator into 3 angular positions
spaced 120 degrees apart to make a 3-shot pano. The camera can be controlled from any phone or
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