Upload 360 images and point clouds to third-party software

This article explains how to upload extracted 360 images and the associated point cloud to third-party visualization platforms. The four platforms officially tested to work with Aura are Pointerra3D, Cintoo Cloud, Bently iTwin, and Prevu3D.

Aura version 1.9 or later allows you to view geolocated 360 panoramic images alongside point clouds.

What you will need

Extracted 360 images and the associated CSV reference files, output by Aura (see Process a 360 scan and extract images in Aura).
A processed point cloud from the same scan.
An active account with the third-party platform being used.
For platform-specific file format requirements, see the relevant procedure below.

Procedure

Each procedure below is independent. Follow the steps for the platform being used.

Step 1: Upload to Prevu3D

Please link to the Prevu3D instructions for uploading scans.

Step 2: Upload to Pointerra 3D CORE

File format requirements	Support for various file formats and sources (e.g. LAS/LAZ, PTS, E57, Geotiff, XYZ, PLY, SHP, DXF, KML, Geojson, ESRI GDB, OBJ, IFC, FBX, Cesium 3D Tiles, ECW, JPGs)

Go to Core - Pointerra3D and log in to your Pointerra3D account.
Click the Upload button on the top right of the page to display the Upload data wizard.
Click Add files then browse for the point cloud files (LAZ) that were processed in Emesent Aura (before the image extraction). The point cloud file(s) in the write_global folder must be used for this, not the ones in any of the georeferenced write_global_xxx folders.
Specify the Source coordinate system. If there is no GPS/RTK data in the scan, select My data is not georeferenced.
- or -
Select Let me select from a list of coordinate systems if the data is georeferenced. The Coordinate System should match the coordinate system described by the .prj file(s) in the write_global folder. Usually, this is a WGS84 UTM zone, with the Vertical Datum set to Ellipsoid.
Before importing into Pointerra, ensure the data is projected using an external tool. You can use third-party GIS software like QGIS or Global Mapper to re-project your data to a different coordinate system. Note that both the point cloud files and the frames_pointerra.csv (see below) must be re-projected the same way. Re-projection of the point cloud and images will come in a future version of Aura.
Source vertical units are in meters.
Enter any metadata information to help identify the scan (optional).
Click the 360 Photos button.
Enter a dataset name then under Source Files, click on the Upload tab.
Click Add files to attach the images and the frames_pointerra.csv file, which contains the spatial reference and file association.
It is recommended to manually select the files instead of adding a folder as there may be additional files in a folder that may confuse the system.
If your data is georeferenced, ensure the Same as point cloud option under Source coordinate system is selected.
Click Add.
Specify the destination of the point cloud and images in the Pointerra cloud folder structure.
Configure the email notifications (optional).
After completing the wizard, click the Begin Upload button.
Wait for the upload to be completed before closing the web browser.
You will be taken to a Jobs screen where you can track the progress of the processing job, when it is completed you receive a notification that it is available to view.

Step 3: Import scans to Cintoo Cloud

File format requirements	E57, traj (.xyz), .jpeg

Click the cloud icon in the top right to install the application locally. Once installed (using admin privileges), upload the 360 images within the selected project. This will launch Cintoo Connect.

Click the Indoor Mobile Scanner tab.
Select Emesent Hovermap as the source Device / Format.
Select the point cloud (E57) and the scanning path (.xyz) files generated from Emesent Aura.
You may modify the Positions sampling value as required. For example, a value of 1/4 creates 1 scan location for every 4 panoramic images included in the scanning path. The number of 3D scans and the average distance between each one is indicated in Cintoo Connect and will be added to your scan count.
Click Import.
Check the Messages tab from time to time to see if the process is running smoothly.
Your new 3D scans will appear in your Cintoo Cloud project.

Step 4: Import 360 images to Cintoo Cloud

Importing the 360° images to Cintoo requires an additional step. The images are geolocated within the cloud and are presented as the same coordinate system that is available to the 360 scans.

The 360° images do not count as scans in your scan count.
The maximum number of 360 images that you can upload to Cintoo Cloud is limited to the number of scans that you subscribed to. For example, if you have a subscription for 5,000 scans, you can upload up to 5,000 additional 360° images.
360° images are 2D only, so you cannot use them to add annotations (which are linked to a 3D point) or to make measurements. They are used for display only.

Using Cintoo Connect, go to the Terrestrial Laser Scanner tab then click Select input files.

Navigate to the output folder that was created during the Emesent Aura 360 image extraction step (it will be inside the second output folder from the active scan directory).
For example: C:\..\Output\frame_extraction\frames\
Select the frames_cintoo.csv file and click Import. The import and upload process will start automatically.

The frames_cintoo.csv file already contains the correct column headings for importing into Cintoo.

Step 5: Import Emesent point cloud to iTwin (Bentley)

Before starting iTwin import, complete the following one-time setup:

Download and install iTwin Capture Import and Upload Tool (available from Bentley)
Download and add Emesent template for uploading the point cloud (available from Bentley)
Download and add Generic Mobile Mapping template for uploading the 360 images (or Panoramas as Bentley calls them) https://kb.orbitgt.com/_media/237/desktop_ext/mapping/manage_import/mobile_mapping_generic.zip

To import the point cloud:

Click the Resources button then select Create Mapping Resource.
Specify the following settings:

Field	Value
Directory	Choose the write global output for your point cloud
Name	Enter a name for your resource
Template	Select Emesent-Hovermap
CRS	Select the appropriate CRS for your dataset

Click Create.
In the Edit Mapping Resource panel, click Import point cloud.
Click Select Files then browse for the point cloud generated using Emesent Aura.
Click Start Now.

Wait for the dataset to load.

Step 6: Import 360 images to iTwin (Bentley)

Click the Resources button then select Create Mapping Resource.

Specify the following settings:

Field	Value
Type	Mobile
Directory	Enter the frames directory from your 360 image output (that includes all the images)
Name	Enter a name for your resource
Template	Select Mobile Mapping Generic
Source / Target CRS	Select the appropriate CRS for your dataset

Click Create.
In the Edit Mapping Resource panel, click Import Panorama 1.

Click Choose File then browse for frames_bentley.csv file located in the frame_extraction folder generated during the image extract process in Emesent Aura.
Click Open File Location then copy all the images from the frame_extraction folder into this folder.
Click on the Mobile Mapping tab at the bottom window then click on one of the capture points to view the corresponding 360 images.

Outcome

The 360 images and associated point cloud have been uploaded to the chosen third-party platform, where they can be viewed, shared, and (depending on the platform) annotated or measured.

Additional information

For prerequisites and earlier steps, see Capture a 360 scan with Hovermap and Process a 360 scan and extract images in Aura.