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Major Platform Update: Stockpiles, Contours, Advanced Processing & Improved Image Inspection

By National Drone Services 66 views

We’ve just shipped a significant platform update focused on terrain analysis, volume measurement, imagery inspection, and job organization.

This release adds powerful new capabilities for construction, grading, inspections, and progress tracking — while keeping default workflows fast and approachable.

Below is a full breakdown of what’s new.

Advanced Image Processing Settings

The Process Imagery workflow now includes an Advanced Settings menu for users who want more control over generated outputs.

You can now:

  • Enable or disable DSM / DTM generation (Required for stockpiles/contours)

  • Toggle Point Cloud generation

  • Enable Contour Line generation with a custom line interval

  • Select the coordinate system used during processing

Disabling unused outputs can significantly reduce processing time.

All defaults are safe and recommended for most jobs.

Draw Boundary for Clipped Outputs

A new Draw Boundary button has been added above the map in the Process Imagery screen.

When a boundary is set:

  • All generated products (orthos, contours, surfaces) are clipped to the boundary

  • Deliverables are cleaner and focused only on the relevant site area

Full-Screen Orthophoto (GeoTIFF) Viewer

Orthophotos now open in a full-screen viewer when double-clicked from the Products folder.

This makes it easier to:

  • Inspect fine detail

  • Analyze terrain and elevation

  • Interact with overlays and measurements

Revamped Image Viewer (JPG / PNG)

We’ve redesigned the standard image viewer used for JPG and PNG imagery.

The new viewer is:

  • Fully responsive and full-screen

  • Faster and smoother to navigate

  • Better suited for inspection workflows than the previous pop-up window

Improved Annotation Workflow

Image annotations have been updated to make inspection faster and more consistent.

New capabilities include:

  • Annotation categories for better organization

  • Improved annotation glossary usability

  • Recently used annotation types now appear at the top when creating new annotations

These changes reduce repetitive searching and speed up large inspection reviews.

Contour Lines: View, Customize, and Compare

Contour lines can now be:

  • Viewed directly inside the GeoTIFF viewer

  • Customized by color and line thickness

  • Toggled on/off as needed

Contour overlays are also supported in reports and Ortho Compare, making it easy to visualize terrain changes between captures.

Stockpile Measurements (Cut / Fill)

A new Stockpiles tool is available directly inside the orthophoto viewer.

With it, you can:

  • Draw a polygon on the orthophoto

  • Calculate cut and fill volumes

  • Save measurements to the job

Stockpiles in Reports & Job Portals

Reports and Job Portals now support a dedicated Stockpiles section.

You can:

  • Select an orthophoto with stockpile measurements

  • Display volume calculations directly in client-facing reports

You can view a live demo HERE

Job Groups

We’ve added Groups to your "My Personal Jobs" page to help manage growing job lists.

You can:

  • Click New Group

  • Drag and drop job cards into groups

  • Organize jobs by client, project, region, or status

Final Thoughts

This update brings powerful terrain analysis, volume measurement, inspection, and organization tools into one streamlined workflow — without adding complexity where it isn’t needed.

If you have feedback or ideas for what we should build next, we’d love to hear from you.