EpcA SDK Getting Started Guide

Leica Geosystems

Leica EpcA SDK 2024.1.0 Getting Started Guide

• Leica Geosystems

  • Leica EpcA SDK 2024.1.0 Getting Started Guide

    • Introduction

    • Why EpcA SDK

    • Architecture

    • Questions or Comments? Contact EpcA SDK Support

Introduction

This article describes the basic ideas of using Embedded Point Cloud Applications (EpcA) SDK to enable Point Cloud support in popular CAD applications as well as GIS applications. “Embedded” means developing a plug-in to provide a set of value-added functions in a host application, such as ArcGIS, AutoCAD, Revit, SolidWorks, etc. When developing a plug-in, capability may be limited by the hosting application’s API support. If you own an application framework, or you are developing a new application and would like to support point cloud, there may be less to no limitation.

Why EpcA SDK

Leica CloudWorx Suite is a series of plug-ins that enable richness of point clouds in popular engineering CAD application, such as AutoCAD, MicroStation, etc. With CloudWorx plug-ins, CAD users can view and measure point clouds directly in CAD views, extract information out of the points, or do interference checking.

EpcA SDK purpose is to extend this technology to many other CAD applications as well as to allow more functions to be explored in popular CAD applications. With EpcA SDK you can build your own CloudWorx-alike applications that support but not limited to following key functions:

• Render point cloud in multiple views.

• Picking into point cloud.

• Spatial queries on point cloud.

• Point color mapping settings.

• Manage clipping to point clouds such as limit box, slice, and fence.

• Extract geometries using fitting or region growing.

• Interference checking.

• TruSpace Explorer.

Architecture

All CloudWorx products (including those developed by third parties) are now built on EpcA’s CwControls APIs. With the uniform C API, developer does not need to distinguish if the point cloud is from Cyclone or JetStream or LGS file.

EpcA SDK supports the following point cloud sources:

• Cyclone CORE: hosted by Cyclone (running as a service).

• Cyclone ENTERPRISE project (hosted on server, in-bound or cloud via http/https).

• JetStream Enterprise project (hosted on in-bound server, phasing out).

• REGISTER 360 deliverable (when Cyclone REGISTER 360 is installed).

• LGS/LGSx file (file-based JetStream point cloud).
  

EpcA SDK evolved over time. Here is some background information:

• Initially (2002) we developed the core using C++ and only supported Cyclone CORE point cloud

• Later (2008) we replaced the core using C# and still only supported Cyclone point cloud.

• Later (2013) we added support of JetStream point cloud and the new APIs eventually transit to C API, which can also support C# through DllImport. The original C# and C++ APIs were deprecated then discontinued.

• EpcA SDK as of version 2022.0+ contains two samples built on C++ and C# wrapper APIs.

• Since version 2022.0.1 we replaced core from C# with C++. But we still maintained the same C APIs and supports all the listed point cloud types.

Questions or Comments? Contact EpcA SDK Support