Boats, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Occasionally potential clients approach iGUIDE Operators inquiring about the possibility of creating an iGUIDE of vehicles and various other irregular structures. While in many cases it is certainly possible to deliver an iGUIDE of a vehicle, there are some important things to consider before making any promises to your client about what an iGUIDE can deliver. Such things as measurement methodology, measurement reliability, delivery time, structural size/complexity, and details about the final product, should all be discussed before arriving on site. Continue reading for answers to these common questions.
Are iGUIDEs of irregular structures reliable?
The iGUIDE Drafting Standard essentially follows the Alberta Residential Measurement Standard (RMS) which is currently the most comprehensive standard in North America. Alberta RMS is based on the ANSI Z765-2013 standard for single-family houses and extends it to condos and apartments in multi-family residential buildings. The iGUIDE Drafting Standard does not follow any measurement standard involving any other irregular structures.
Due to this, the measurements delivered in the iGUIDE Report for irregular structures cannot be relied on to the same degree when compared to our strict measurement standard for regular buildings. While the PLANIX or PLANIX R1 camera systems, our drafting software, and method of measurement are potentially sophisticated enough to deliver a sufficient quality and quantity of measurement for this purpose, the iGUIDE Drafting Standard simply does not account for every type of structure. We may eventually expand our Standard to account for a greater variety, but today our focus remains on residential and commercial types of buildings.
Can I get an iGUIDE of any kind of structure?
Possibly. We do not refuse any specific structures. We have delivered iGUIDEs of ships, yachts, sail/fishing boats, aeroplanes, and even private jets in the past. The Drafting Team will always try their best to accommodate most requests and will deliver any iGUIDE provided that the data submitted is properly aligned and of sufficient quantity/quality. The Drafting Team does reserve the right to refuse any submission deemed to be of insufficient quantity/quality to deliver a functional iGUIDE.
Basically, the greater the size and complexity of the vehicle, the more data will be required to complete the iGUIDE. In turn, the more data that is required, the greater the chance that the data collected is insufficient in some way.
Do I need to do anything differently on-site when shooting an irregular structure?
Not necessarily. The same general rules that apply when shooting a regular structure apply to irregular ones as well. You should consider such typical things as sufficient lighting/visibility, sufficient area coverage, keeping the camera level, minimizing obstructions at laser scanner height, and aligning data before submission. Anyone, or indeed, all of the above considerations may be significantly more difficult to achieve simply by the nature of the structure and the environment. For example, high wind speed may impact your ability to survey a boat, even when docked. As well, it may be difficult to minimize obstructions at laser scanner height in a ship’s engine room. Furthermore, the interior walls of boats and planes are often curved to match their exterior to maximize space. If possible, you should try to scan as many straight walls as you can at the maximum width of the space. In general, just try to remember that the height at which you scan a space will especially have an impact on the resulting floor plan.
Will the iGUIDE of an irregular structure be delivered any differently?
No, although turnaround time may be impacted depending on the size and complexity of the structure. The expected iGUIDE delivery time for irregular structures may be anywhere from the same/next day to several days. While turnaround time for regular structures is strictly impacted by the estimated total billable square footage (i.e. processing a property near/greater than 10,000 sq ft may take multiple days), irregular structures are an exception to this rule due to their irregular shape. That being said, our aim is always to deliver iGUIDEs as soon as possible.
Do iGUIDEs of irregular structures cost more?
No, not necessarily. Like regular floor plans, irregular floor plans are typically billed based on drafted square footage. However, on rare occasions, a custom quote may be necessary if the iGUIDE is exceptionally difficult and/or time-consuming to draft.
What can I expect to see as a final product?
Below are just a few examples of what you can expect your iGUIDE to resemble. Exterior vehicle features like aeroplane wings and tails (see Figure 1), and the hulls of ships (see Figures 2-3) are purely representational.
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