Convert LiDAR to LAS 1.4 with LAStools

[Martin Isenburg]

Hello,

Here is an increasingly common situation: All your awesome LiDAR files are in LAS 1.2 format but - darn - the tender specification document of your client explicitly requests the data delivery to be in the latest LAS 1.4 format. The free and open source las2las module of LAStools – also known as the Swiss Army knife of LiDAR processing – can easily up-convert them. Here is how ... (-:

.

http://rapidlasso.com/2016/01/10/create-proper-las-1-4-files-with-lastools-for-free/

Regards,

Martin @rapidlasso

PS: Make sure to download the latest 160110 version to get all the functionality described.

[Loren]

Is there a way to reset (or maintain) the system identifier in the output LAS header? I would like to maintain the lidar system used to capture the data for our own and our clients information/metadata. Im also not sure that the LAStools information put there by las2las is spec compliant - the spec seems fairly clear on contents of this field.

[Martin Isenburg]

Hello Loren.

it seems common practice that the two 32 character strings in the LAS header are used to store the name of the software that processed the file last. It seems that all other software packages do that as well. Now sometimes people prefer to keep either the name of the software that exported the flightlines (e.g. Optech LMS 3.0 or RiPROCESS 2.5.1 or LEica CloudPro 1.0) when the data is processing in flightlines. Othertimes people seem to prefer to keep the name of the software that was first used to tile the data (e.g. Terrasolid, MARS Merrick, ...). If this is the case you can simply use the suggestion of Michael and change the header *in-place* with lasinfo at the end of processing.

http://rapidlasso.com/lasinfo

http://lastools.org/download/lasinfo_README.txt

Here the example for single strips or tiles:

lasinfo -i strip.laz ^
           -set_system_identifier "Crossfire LMS Q1560" ^
           -set_generating_software "RiPROCESS 2.5.1"

lasinfo -i tile.laz ^
           -set_system_identifier "" ^
           -set_generating_software "ArgghhGIS"

Here the example for folders of strips or tiles:

lasinfo -i strips/*.laz ^
           -set_system_identifier "Crossfire LMS Q1560" ^
           -set_generating_software "RiPROCESS 2.5.1" ^

           -cores 8

lasinfo -i tiles/*.laz ^
           -set_system_identifier "" ^
           -set_generating_software "ArgghhGIS" ^

           -cores 8

This is a very fast *in-place* operation so there is maybe no need to run this in parallel on 8 cores.

We have also come across some hesitation to deliver products that say "LAStools" because of the perceived "affordability" of our software for scripted production workflows on a server (and more and more often also in the cloud). (-; A reasonable chunk of the industry is using (licensed) LAStools to batch-process LiDAR in parallel for many standard tasks. Some reserve their - often much more expensive - seats of other well known software packages for those tasks that LAStools is either not so good at or does not provide a solution for. We hope to publish a list of all our clients in the near future (as we got their agreement) to address that "affordability" stigma ... (-;

Regards,

Martin @rapidlasso

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[Loren Dawe]

Thanks Martin,
Exactly what I was looking for!