Sitemap Contact Home
Company Products News Support Download


Support > Frequently Asked Questions


Product Info

Setup and Configuration

Technical Info

Technical Hints and Tips

CUBE Info


1. Product Info

Q1.1: Is Fledermaus commercial software?

Yes. We have commercial and academic pricing. Please contact us at info@ivs3d.com for more details.

Q1.2: What is the difference between Fledermaus Standard and Fledermaus Professional(PRO)?

Fledermaus Standard is the core visualization tools that long time fledermaus users will be familiar with but at a reduced price. Fledermaus, Dmagic, Average Grid and many new and improved features are also included in this package. This software package is designed for general integration and visualization of multiple data types.

Fledermaus Professional includes all of the functionality of Fledermaus Standard plus applications specifically developed to address Multibeam and LIDAR data acquisition. In addition tools for project planning and post processing QC are included. Highlights of the Pro version are: PFMDirect, RoutePlanner, OmniViewer, CrossCheck, ROVManager, Wave-400 and Wave-1000. For further explanation of these features, please look at other info on this web page or contact info@ivs3d.com.

Q1.3: If I purchase Fledermaus Standard, can I upgrade to Fledermaus Pro?

Yes, yes you can. For more information contact info@ivs3d.com.

Q1.4: How did Fledermaus get its name?

The word "fledermaus" is the German word for a bat ("fleder" means flying and maus means "mouse"). This name was selected because of an intuitive 3D input device used with Fledermaus that is called the "bat". This device has a joystick handle, but can be moved in 3 dimensions (left/right, up/down, forward/backward) and turned in any direction for a full 6 degrees of freedom. Even novice users can learn to navigate around a 3D scene quickly and the bat is ideal for making movies or doing demonstrations. The bat is an electromagnetic device and is included with a full commercial license of Fledermaus.

2. Setup and Configuration

Q2.1 How do I download Fledermaus?

The first step when installing Fledermaus is to download the software for your platform from our Fledermaus Download page. Follow the instructions to get the version and platform you require.

Q2.2 What types of licensing are available for Fledermaus?

Fledermaus needs a license to run on your machine. Currently three different types of licenses are supported: a node-locked license which is tied to a particular computer, a dongle which plugs into your parallel or USB port, or a network license server. Network servers allow a number of licenses to be put on a central computer. These licenses can then be checked out, used, and then checked back in by computers on the network. For more information on setting up dongles, see question 2.4. If you are setting up a network license, see the System Installation document.

Q2.3 How do I get a license for Fledermaus?

If you wish to obtain a license of Fledermaus for evaluation of the software, please fill out our Evaluate Fledermaus form. If you have already purchased a license of Fledermaus, please download the software from our Download page. Next locate the Ethernet ID for your current machine (see How do I find my ethernet address?). Send the Ethernet ID along with details of your operating system (Irix, Solaris, Windows, Linux, OSX) and the version of Fledermaus you have purchased to sales@ivs3d.com. If you need to contact us for a quote, please call 603 431-1773 or e-mail info@ivs3d.com. Please indicate whether you are applying for commercial or academic pricing.

Q2.4 How do I set up a dongle for Fledermaus?

With Fledermaus versions previous to 6.5, the dongle driver installation is now part of the Fledermaus installation process. Once the software has been installed, the user will be prompted to install the dongle drivers. If you have not installed these drivers, or are unsure if the drivers were previously installed, we recommend that you install them. To check that the dongle drivers were successfully installed, run lmtools from the /ivs/lmutils/ directory. Select the "systems settings" tab. If the process has been successful and you have a dongle plugged into your machine, you should see the dongle id number in the FLEXID field. This number should match the dongle serial number (usually formatted something like 8-5d8gffg9). This number should also be present in your license file.

If you are using Fledermaus 6.5 or greater to install the dongle driver go to the /ivs/lmutils/ directory and run the FlexID installer program (FLEXidInstaller.exe). An installation wizard will show and you will be prompt to which version you would like to install. If you are using a USB dongle, select the 9 version. If you are using a Parallel dongle, select version 8. Once the wizard is complete you will need to restart your computer.

Q2.5 I have run the dongle drivers, but the sofware still can not find a valid license.

If you have gone through the dongle setup steps from question 2.4, and have a valid license.dat file, but still can not successfully start the software, please contact support@ivs3d.com.

Q2.6: What configuration of machine do I need to use Fledermaus?

Fledermaus runs on multiple platforms. The most significant component in getting good performance is the video card. Systems with a powerful video subsystem will have good performance. Next most important is the amount of memory available on the system and lastly is the CPU speed. An adequate amount of memory to handle your data sets without swapping. The CPU speed is not as important, since most operations are dependent on how fast the video subsystem can draw and how fast memory can be accessed. For the latest PC system recommendations, click here. For more information on the different supported platforms, see our Platforms Overview page.

Some sample configurations are:

  • x86 PC with Windows NT/2000/XP
  • x86 PC with Linux
  • Mac OSX

Q2.7 How do I set up the bat?

For instructions on setting up the IsotrackII Bat, please refer to the BAT setup guide. For the new Patriot Bat, please refer to the Patriot setup guide.

Q2.8 I have set the bat up following the directions, but it still does not work?

The 3D input device, or Bat, communicates with the Fledermaus application via the Device3Dserver applet. If you ever have problems with the Bat this program can be run independently to fault find. However, you should first check the obvious:

  • Is the device connected to the serial port you are trying to use and turned on?
  • Are the preferences in Fledermaus set to the correct port and type of device?
When trouble shooting it is best to directly run the Device3DServer applet from the command line that lets you see a scrolling list of numbers when operating correctly. Once running you can also then run Fledermaus separately and change to the 3D flight mode.

Things to check first:

- PC Windows Platform:
If the Bat is turned on and the serial cable is plugged in when Windows is booted, Windows will try and configure a serial mouse for the Bat. So make sure the Bat is off when booting a windows machine.

- Any Unix platform:
Double-check the serial port permissions. Often they are configured by default to only allow reading from the serial port. The Bat requires both read and write permissions.

Depending on platform the serial port device name is:

           Linux
 Port #1:  /dev/ttyS0
 Port #2:  /dev/ttyS1
To see permissions: ls -l

Become root: and do a chmod 777 . This gives full permissions to the port. The execute permission is not strictly necessary but is probably a good idea.

To Test The Device:

Run the program: Device3DServer -h for help

Example: Device3DServer -device Isotrak2 -port /dev/ttyS0 -v

Don't forget the -v command for verbose output. You will see a few messages and if all is well after 4-8 seconds you should see a continuous stream of numbers. If you do and they're not all zeros then the Bat is working and all should be well.

On the Unix platforms if you get the message unable to open port, and you have previously checked the permissions, then this often means that the cable connecting the computer to the Bat is missing a NULL modem adapter (or has one too many).

Q2.9 - Will firewall software affect the operation of a license server?

Yes. The license server needs to have certain ports open for the client machines to connect. If those ports are being blocked, then the clients will not be able to check out a license. See question 2.11 for the exact ports.

Q2.10 - My machine checks out licenses from a license server, if I install firewall software will this cause a problem?

No. Client machines do not need to have any open ports.

Q2.11 - When running a license server, what TCP ports need to be open?

The license server software connects using two ports. The first port is selected from the first available port in the range 27000 to 27009. The second port is assigned by the operating system when the server is started. Since this port will change each time the server is started, this is not suitable when a firewall is in use. To get around this, the second port can be specified in the DAEMON section of the server license file. For example:

   
   SERVER demeter 0007e96df22e
   DAEMON ivs port=1051
   FEATURE fmpro ivs 6.1 permanent 5 88G016678268 DUP_GROUP=UH   
   
In this case, the TCP port 1051 will be used (This part of the license file can be modified without needing a new license from IVS).

To summarize, the following ports need to be open:

a) All 10 ports in the range 27000 to 27009
b) The port specified on the DAEMON line of the server license file

Q2.12 - How do I open up certain TCP ports on my firewall software?

Please refer to the documentation for your specific firewall software. For instructions on using the built in firewall that comes with Windows XP Service Pack 2, go to question 2.13.

Q2.13 - How do I open up certain TCP ports in Windows XP, Service Pack 2?

To open up certain TCP ports in Windows XP, Service Pack 2, do the following:

- Open the Windows Firewall Controls: Start Menu > Settings > Control Panel > Windows Firewall

- Change to the "Exceptions" tab

- For each port you need to open, click "Add Port", and then specify the port number. Refer to question 2.11 for exact port numbers.

Q2.14 - What does the following error mean: "nVidia OpenGL driver: Driver components mis-match. Exit is the only option."?

This means that your video driver is out of date. Fix this problem by going to http://nvidia.com/content/drivers/drivers.asp and downloading the most recent driver for your video card. Usually, Fledermaus benefits from having a recent driver for any brand of video card.
If you use a Dell computer you can also go to the Dell website, http://support.dell.com, to find an updated driver.

3. Technical Info

Q3.2: What are the data size limits in Fledermaus?

The maximum file size you can use depends on the type of data you are using as well as your operating system and hardware configuration. For more information on specific limitations, please contact IVS support.

Q3.3: What data types does Fledermaus support?

Fledermaus supports a variety of data types depending on what you are trying to visualize. Below is a list of common data types and the main applications that would be used to handle this type of data. For a full overview of both internal and external data types in Fledermaus, please refer to the Reference Manual.

The following is a list of data types supported by Avggrid:

  • Digital Terrain Model (DTM) classes (assemble SD file in DMagic)
    • BasicDTM
    • SonarDTM
    • SphericalDTM
    • TexturedDTM
    • SurfacePlotDTM
  • 3D Geometric Classes
    • 3D Point class (File -> Import Data -> Import Points)
    • 3D Line/Polygon class (ArcView shape files, DXF, File -> Import Data -> Import Lines)
    • 3D Grid class (Data -> Add 3D Grid)
    • Contour Lines class (Controls -> Contouring)
    • Solid Model class (3DS or Wavefront OBJ)
  • Imagery Visualization Classes
    • GeoImage class (Data -> Add Image)
    • Vertical Image class (Data -> Add Vertical Image)
    • Vertical Curtain/ Seismic Class (applets: mkvcurtain, segeditor, renderseis)
  • Sounding QC (Quality Control) Classes
    • Sounding class (mksoundings)
    • HTF Sounding class
    • PFM Sounding class (Files -> Import PFM)
      • HTF to PFM and back to HTF (3D editor, applet: htfconvert)
      • GSF to PFM and back to GSF (3D editor)
      • SHOALS to PFM and back to SHOALS (3D editor)
      • ASCII XYZ to PFM and back to ASCII XYZ (3D editor)
  • ROV Operations Class (Data -> Add ROV)
  • Supported Surface Formats (Load with DMagic, File->Import Surface)
    • OMG R4/Mos
    • ASCII Multivariate
    • Etopo5 Database
    • NOAA Gravity Data
    • Grass DTM
    • Gridded Ascii
    • Predicted Topography
    • GMT GRD/NetCDF
    • ISIS grd
    • Surfer ASCII grid
    • ER Mapper Scalar (.ers)
    • GRI
    • USGS DEM
    • Arcview Grid
    • Raw Binary Grid
  • XYZ formats supported (avggrid, DMagic: File->Import XYZ, File->Export XYZ)
    • ASCII text
    • C&C binary
    • STB binary
    • IVS binary
    • GSF binary
    • ArcView Grid (export only in DMagic)
  • Image formats supported (DMagic)
    • TIFF including geoTIFF
    • JPEG
    • GIF
    • BMP
    • PCX
    • PPM
    • Raw RGB
    • Unisips
    • TDR
    • PostScript (output only)

Q3.4: What types of 3D Interaction does Fledermaus support?

Fledermaus supports the following three main mechanisms for 3D interaction:

1. 3D Flight using the IVS Bat
2. 3D Flight using the Logitech 3D Mouse
3. 3D Flight using mouse controlled navigation ( widgets )
4. 3D Flight using 3DConnexion's SpaceNavigator

The technical document interaction_modes.pdf provides further details about the interaction modes.

Q3.5:What file formats does Fledermaus support for Area Based Editing?

When working with Area Based Editing, a format can be supported for input only, or it can be fully suported for both loading and unloading. For the full details of the supported formats, please refer to the following page: Formats.

Q3.6:Does Dmagic support importing grids made with CARIS HIPS 6.1?

Yes, with Dmagic you can import grids made with the latest versions of Caris HIPS.

Q3.7: Does IVS have a user forum?

Yes. You can visit our forum here.

Q3.8 - Does Fledermaus read Hypacks HS2 format?

Yes Fledermaus applications and specifically PFMDirect read and write to, the HS2 format. However, Hypack only supplies libraries for the Windows environment, which requires users to work in this environment if they are dealing with HS2 format data.

4. Technical Hints and Tips

Q4.1: How do I load XYZ data?

There are typically two kinds of XYZ data, gridded and ungridded. Choose dmagic to import gridded data and avggrid to import ungridded data.

Avggrid is used to import ungridded data. Avggrid can be started from DMagic using the "File -> Import XYZ Data" menu item. Once in avggrid, select "File -> Add File to Grid..." to select the file(s) you would like to import. Select the desired gridding parameters, in particular set the Cell Size to an appropriate value for your dataset, then click "Scan File." Now avggrid will show the bounds and size of the dataset. Process the data into a DTM by first clicking "Convert," then exporting the file (File->Export DTM/GEO file...). For more details, see Chapter 5 of the Reference Manual. You can also view the DTM by clicking on the "Plot DTM" button on the bottom row.

DMagic is similar, but is used to import gridded data. Select "File->Import Surface" and select the desired file. Next pick the file type, choose the desired parameters such as cell size from the righthand panel, click "Scan for Information," and then choose "Convert and Save File" to save the new DTM.

Q4.2: How do I load an ArcView shape file?

You can use Fledermaus to import an ArcView shape file. In Fledermaus, select "File -> Import Data -> Import Arcview...," enter the required file names, then click "Convert Selected File." This will create a lines object which you can load directly into Fledermaus.

Q4.3 How do I load images?

Images can be loaded into a scene in Fledermaus. Also, an image can be draped on a DTM using DMagic or the mktextureDTM applet. There are several ways that you can import an image:

  • draped on a DTM in dmagic or mktextureDTM
  • georeferenced to a portion of a DTM using dmagic
  • horizontally or vertically in Fledermaus

In DMagic, select "File->Import Image...." Enter the file name or browse using the arrowhead icon. Choose whether to rescale the image to the size of the DTM or to match georeferenced regions. In the latter case, enter the georeferencing data for the image and the resampling filter desired. In both cases, enter the output file name and select the DTM to process.

In Fledermaus, select "Data->Import Image" or "Data->Import Vertical Image." In both cases, a new node will be added to the scene which you can select in the lower left panel. Selecting the image node will show the settings for the image in the Data Set Control panel. Here, you can enter the file name of the image or browse for the image by clicking on the arrowhead icon.

Q4.4 Can I use Fledermaus to process multibeam sonar and/or LIDAR data?

The 3D Area Based Editing module in Fledermaus is based on the PFM data structure developed at the US Naval Oceanographic Office. The PFM structure allows the load of a variety of common multibeam formats for visualization and editing. These include GSF, Caris HDCS, SHOALS out and wav files, HTF and ASCII XYZ plus attribute data. The PFM is meant to be a temporary structure used to optimize data for area based editing and can be removed once all editing is complete.

3D Surface Area Based Editing allows better decision making since all of the data is visible in a certain area, not a subset, and editing decisions can be made much quicker and more accurately than single line/swath based editing.

The typical method of using PFM is to load data from an existing format to the optimized PFM structure, process, edit the data, select soundings features and in Fledermaus, and then save the changes back to the original file. This scheme allows data to remain in its original form and does not require that all data be permanently changed to a new file format. It also provides a rigorous audit trail for verification.

For further details see the Area Based Editing Manual or Module 4 of the training material.

Q4.5: How do I load point and line data?

In Fledermaus, select "File -> Import -> Import Points" or "File -> Import -> Import Lines." Select the input file, the format of the input file and any other required information , then click "OK"

Q4.6: How do I make a movie?

IVS has recently improved the movie making process. All movie making operations are now done within the MovieClient application using a simple to use wizard that will guide you through the operation.

To make a movie you will need:

- a scene file ( .scene )
- a flightpath file ( .fph )

If you have these files, the wizard should be able to guide you through the rest. For the exact process refer to chapter 7 of the Reference Manual or the trainning modules.

Q4.7: How do I assemble TIFF images into an MPEG or AVI?

This is the last step in creating a flight path video (movie) (see Q12). You can use "movieencoder" or third party software such as "QuickTime Pro" or "Adobe Premier" on PCs.

Q4.8: How do I create transparent vertical sub-bottom images?

The process of creating vertical sub-bottom images involves using the 'mkvcurtain' command line applet and optionally a 3rd party graphics editing package such as Photoshop. For a detailed explanation of the process for creating these images, please refer to the vertical_images.pdf technical document.

Q4.9: How do I mask portions of a DTM?

The process of using an image mask to create a new masked DTM is done using the 'scalarmask' command line applet and an example is described in the masking.pdf technical document.

Q4.10: Why can't I find the command line applets in the /bin directory anymore?

The command line applications are now run from either the FMCommand application or a new command line applet called cmdop. When using fmcommand, select the "Command & Control" tab. You should see all of the command line applets on the left hand side of the interface. To use the applets on the command line, cmdop must be used to access that functionality. For example instead of "mkcamp -in..." you would now use "cmdop mkcmap -in...".

Q4.11: When I render a movie using MovieClient, the field of view seems shifted or smaller than when I recorded the flightpath in Fledermaus. What's going on?

Your field of view is determined by the size of the display window in MovieClient; if the display window is smaller than the Fledermaus window, then MovieClient will only show the centre of the image that Fledermaus shows and will cut off the edges. Since Antaliasing and "render magnification" change the size of the display, they also affect your field of view; increasing the render magnification decreases your field of view and increasing antialiasing increases the field of view. You can work around this problem by resizing the Fledermaus window so that the 3D display in Fledermaus is the same size and shape as the MovieClient display (you specify this value indirectly when choosing the movie format). This will be improved in a later version of Fledermaus. We recommend you take an image of a certain size (in pixels) and load it into Fledermaus and then match the bounds of the viewing window with the image bounds.

Q.4.12: How do I import a pipe or cable route into Route Planner and profile along it?

1. Open Route Planner and load the SD surface object.
2. Changed the Default Radius from 1000 to a value of 1. This is located in the top left hand corner of the application.
3. Import the XY point file from the Menu option, File > Import > Import XY Intersections.
4. Go into 'Edit Mode' by clicking on the 'Edit' Button located at the top right hand corner of the application.
5. You can now profile along the imported route by right clicking anywhere on that route and dragging to anywhere else on the route that you want to extend your profile to. It is sometimes helpful to zoom in on the route before you start the profiling.
Note: While in edit mode, you can only profile along a loaded route. If you want a profile of the surface that is outside of a route, you have to leave 'Edit Mode'. Also, to profile from one point on a route to another, you don't have right click and drag along the actual route until you get to the end of the desired profile. You can simply right click on the route, and drag directly to the end point. And finally while in edit mode be sure not to left click or middle click one surface as this could end up editing the route.

5. CUBE Info

Q5.1: What is CUBE?

CUBE (Combined Uncertainty and Bathymetric Estimator) is an algorithm that takes advantage of statistical redundancy in a dense collection of soundings. Tracking the uncertainty associated with these soundings, CUBR can make estimates of the true depth of water across a survey area.

Q5.2: What do I need to run CUBE?

The requirements for running CUBE depend on which method is used to provide the errors. The three methods are:

1. Using a fixed user supplied value for the vertical and horizontal TPE ( Total Propagated Error ):

- This method has the lowest requirements and can be used with any input format that PFMDirect supports but as one might expect will have limitations. It is best to make use of the power of CUBE with a data format that supports TPE (see below).

2. Reading pre-calculated errors from the input files:

- This requires a supported input format that contains variance error values. As this technology is still new, only a number of formats provide this information. We currently support the GSF file format. ASCII xyz files can also be used with CUBE if they are formatted so that two extra columns with the variance values for vertical and horizontal error are present. We intend to support reading errors from HDCS files in a future release. Sign up to our mailing list to keep track of these developments.

3. Calculating errors using the built in error models:

- This method has the largest number of requirements. First, only input formats that contain navigation data as well as other ancillary data can be used for this method. Currently the two supported formats are GSF and HDCS. In addition, the multibeam sensor used to collect the data must be one of the supported sensors ( see question 5.3 ). The final requirement is that a vessel configuration file ( .par extension ) containing sensor offsets and error values for the collection platform must be provided. Click on following link to download example of .par file.

If you have a format containing either built in errors or navigation data, and would like to have it supported, please contact support@ivs3d.com for further information.

Q5.3: When calculating errors using the error model, what sensor types are supported?

The following sensors are supported:

- Simrad EM300
- Simrad EM1000
- Simrad EM1002
- Simrad EM3000
- Simrad EM3000D
- Reson SeaBat 8101
- Reson SeaBat 9001
- Reson SeaBat 9003
- Reson SeaBat 8125
- Atlas Hydrosweep
- Elak Nautik 1180
- Seabeam 2112

Q5.4: Is a sample vessel configuration (*.par) file available?

Yes. A sample vessel configuration file is available for download: vessel001.par.













Company | Products | News | Support | Download
Copyright © 1999-2007. Contact | Privacy | Copyright | Sitemap | Feedback


E-mail: info@ivs3d.com
Phone: (603) 431-1773