iphone 12 Pro - is going to be a revolution in cave surveying
- Thread starter mrodoc
- Start date
mrodoc
Well-known member
I would but it is an usdz file so won't attach. This file type was created by Pixar which might be a clue. The phone in question costs ?1200 but the chap who sorted out my computer has just bought one and produced it when I was telling him about how technology had advanced in surveying from tape compass and clino to something like the latest Shetland Attack Pony. He then asked if the Lidar system on his new phone would do something similar and proceeded to demonstrate that it did. He scanned round the room picking up all the edges and then I watched the room reconstructed in front my eyes. I was impressed.
langcliffe
Well-known member
With a maximum range of 5 metres, it'll take a bit of time and some aerial acrobatics to cover Titan.
pwhole
Well-known member
I was amused that none of the extensive tech specs mention that it does phone calls. Though I guess that's almost an optional extra these days.
I wonder why they don't just rebrand them as: 'Pocket computers that might be able to make a phone call if you really need to, but then again you might have to borrow your mate's Nokia 3310 if you're in the countryside'. Cos it's happened to me plenty of times.
I'm the one with the 3310, BTW
I wonder why they don't just rebrand them as: 'Pocket computers that might be able to make a phone call if you really need to, but then again you might have to borrow your mate's Nokia 3310 if you're in the countryside'. Cos it's happened to me plenty of times.
I'm the one with the 3310, BTW
ILT
Member
I wonder if the battery lasts long enough to survey beyond the entrance.
My youngest son has a FLIR camera on his phone....not just a gimmick - SMS from him this week says it proved useful in following where a mouse disappeared into the skirting board
(I don't know of any phones with a mouse trap built in but a iphone would possibly be suitable for dispatching the mouse if you had a good aim)
With development LIDAR units (with more useful ranges than the phone gizmo) becoming affordable it surely wont be long before we see designs for handheld cave/mine survey equipment with them.
Not caving realted but I was considering using one of my older quadcopter platforms to carry out LIDAR surveys of limekilns in hobby fashion.
My youngest son has a FLIR camera on his phone....not just a gimmick - SMS from him this week says it proved useful in following where a mouse disappeared into the skirting board
(I don't know of any phones with a mouse trap built in but a iphone would possibly be suitable for dispatching the mouse if you had a good aim)
With development LIDAR units (with more useful ranges than the phone gizmo) becoming affordable it surely wont be long before we see designs for handheld cave/mine survey equipment with them.
Not caving realted but I was considering using one of my older quadcopter platforms to carry out LIDAR surveys of limekilns in hobby fashion.
mountainpenguin
Member
wrong company there apples current buisness model is privacy / ownership especially to content creators. The giant chocolate factory (google) and facebook are the one who try and claim ownership of everything these daysEd said:
pwhole
Well-known member
Surely though that begs the question - if they can knock out a real-time LIDAR module that will fit inside an iPhone, why can't we just buy the damn LIDAR module now in a box and sack off the 'phone'? And not waste ?1200? I would hazard a guess the entire module can't cost more than ?50 out of the total retail price? So about ?20 really. If it's significantly more than ?50 of the retail price, it could be argued that everyone who will never need the LIDAR module (i.e. most users) are being rather ripped off?
Buying a new iPhone to survey a cave seems a bit like buying a Ferrari to do the shopping with. Or a giant Harley-Davidson to cruise around Castleton village
Buying a new iPhone to survey a cave seems a bit like buying a Ferrari to do the shopping with. Or a giant Harley-Davidson to cruise around Castleton village
2xw
Active member
pwhole said:Surely though that begs the question - if they can knock out a real-time LIDAR module that will fit inside an iPhone, why can't we just buy the damn LIDAR module now in a box and sack off the 'phone'? And not waste ?1200? I would hazard a guess the entire module can't cost more than ?50 out of the total retail price? So about ?20 really. If it's significantly more than ?50 of the retail price, it could be argued that everyone who will never need the LIDAR module (i.e. most users) are being rather ripped off?
Buying a new iPhone to survey a cave seems a bit like buying a Ferrari to do the shopping with. Or a giant Harley-Davidson to cruise around Castleton village
The modules are less than ?20 (to buy one). There's no reason why someone with the programming wherewithal couldn't knock one out.
Most users probably will use the lidar on the iPhone - the camera uses it to aid focusing and the FaceID uses a similar system (I think infrared) to measure your face.
I'm guessing the lidar module will mostly be used in augmented reality - i.e a new IKEA app where you hold up your phone and it projects an image of a chest of drawers into your room so you can see how it looks.