The Resource Consent System
On April Fool’s Day 2004 we created this ‘tongue in cheek’ image to highlight the consequences of the shutting down of Project Aqua. We called it Project Aero and posed the question – ‘is this really the price you want to pay?’ To generate the same amount of power that was proposed from Project Aqua it required a windfarm stretching 50km from the tip of the Peninsula down to Taieri Mouth. At the time these were the most efficient windmills we could find.
State Highway 20
This application was built specifically for Beca Carter to assist in the planning and resource consent procedure for a major highway through suburban Auckland. ARL used a combination of satellite and aerial photography, and a combination of LINZ survey data with orthophotographic terrain data to produce a computer model of a site. In its final form it allowed Beca Carter staff to add a full range of buildings, bridges and street lighting as well as test different roading options for the highway. The base model rendered in real-time and automatically placed over 12,000 properties in pre-surveyed positions.
This site can now be viewed from anywhere interactively and, using ARL’s real time renderer, line-of-sights can be investigated and the visual impact of building structures on the terrain can be viewed ‘on the fly’. Additional data such as street addresses, valuations, construction materials, noise zones etc, can also be accessed and superimposed in true space.
The Virtual Eye Golf Terrain Viewer
ARL’s sporting division Virtual Eye is a world leader in provision of real time 3D sports graphics for television and big screen. Each new event venue is created using aerial photography, developing a terrain model and then adding 3D models. Our golf application has been developed to a level where a computer graphics operator can import buildings and trees, water fountains, vehicles and the like and can alter the weather on the fly to match the real conditions on site. Read more about Virtual Eye Golf
Project Aqua
Project Aqua was a 60km Hydro Electricity Generation Scheme where ARL was asked to demonstrate its capability to provide visualisation of comprehensive layers of GIS data in 3D and real time. The information displayed ranged from locations of sites of historical interest, soil types, crops, weather data, sound contours, dust levels, borrow and fill areas, cadstral data, property boundaries, water levels and many more. For the same project ARL was also engaged to provide an animation of the predicted effects on the residual river under the River Management Strategy that was proposed as part of the mitigation activities vs the natural changes of the river over time.
3D Photorealistic Visualisations
Moisture Master
Moisture Master was a commercial where ARL was required to add buildings and trees to our New Zealand digital terrain model. Time lapse weather and light effect were then added to create a real four seasons in one day feeling. Read more about Moisture Master
Brisbane
This project required the highest level of 3D visualisation we have ever been asked to deliver in any project of this nature. The client required a series of animations and stills to show what the view would be from a proposed 70 story apartment complex situated in downtown Brisbane. Accurate views for every fifth floor at the four points of the compass in the morning and in the evening were required along with two large scale ‘hero’ animations from the top floor showing a morning and an evening scene. The hero animations were to be projected onto a 10m by 2.5m wall thus requiring an extremely high level of model accuracy. Detailed models were created for all buildings within 4 blocks of the proposed development and for all ‘signature’ buildings within the 240 degree animation window (eg. Suncorp stadium). These models were located on a terrain model developed by us from contour maps using ortho rectified aerial photography as a reference. Buildings in the middle distance were created as simple 3D models and matt painting techniques were used for the distant suburbs. The use of 3D modes throughout the near and mid distance meant that lighting effects including shadows and reflections could then be created using our proprietary software package. Read more about Brisbane
Whalewatch
WhaleWatch Kaikoura’s “World of the Whales” is an on board virtual tour that takes visitors to the depths of the Kaikoura Canyon off the coast of New Zealand and puts them ‘virtually’ face to face with the marine creatures that live in this 2.5 km deep chasm below the surface of the Pacific Ocean. Using existing data ARL not only re-created the Kaikoura canyon they then proceeded to drain all the water from it showing what lies at it’s dramatic depths. Read more about WhaleWatch Kaikoura
Mega Disasters
Mega Disasters is a television series made for National Geographic which relied heavily on compositing and matte painting. Throughout the series ARL took real video footage shot on location and post produced animated sequences such as a Tsunami which devastates Honolulu. Read more about Mega Disasters