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THE DEVELOPMENT OF A DIGITAL PHOTOGRAMMETRIC SOFTCOPY KIT FOR 
EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES 
L. Coelho?^ 
* The Military Institute of Engineering, Cartographic Engineering Department, Praca General Tibürcio 80, Rio de 
Janeiro/RJ — Brazil — Icoelho Q universiabrasil.net 
^ 4^ Surveying Division — Avenida Marechal Bittencourt 97, Compensa, Manaus/AM - Brazil — 
Icoelho @universiabrasil.net 
Commission VI, WG VI/2 
KEY WORDS: Photogrammetry, Developing Countries, Learning, Teaching, Education, Software. 
ABSTRACT: 
This paper shows the current efforts in order to develop a digital photogrammetric softcopy kit which intends to provide a link 
between theory and practice in the field of Photogrammetry. These efforts have started in 2002, with the development of the first 
modules of the E-Foto kit: image viewer, project configuration, camera parameters, interior orientation and digital mensuration. The 
project was based upon a two-principle approach: freedom of software and self-teaching. This means that all software are delivered 
under à free license (in this case, the GNU GPL), which turns it accessible to users who might compile and use it, study its code or 
even develop new modules for it. The second principle relies on a considerable amount of teaching material that accompanies the 
software, including an on line help. the e-book on Digital Photogrammetry and the project's support homepage. Based on these 
resources, the user will be able to study the main photogrammetric principles, how they work and how to use them. Its main 
objective is to diminish the gap that exists nowadays between the teaching of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing in universities 
and Research Institutions of developing countries and the high-tech expensive systems that are used under the spatial data production 
environment. Currently, there are five modules ready to use, in English and Portuguese, and one under development. Both Linux 
and Windows versions are available. Thee-book on Digital Photogrammetry is available only in Portuguese and is distributed as a 
series of portable document files (pdf's). 
1.INTRODUCTION 
1.1 Photogrammetry: a Brief History 
Photogrammetry can be regarded as "the science and 
technology of obtaining spatial measurements and other 
geometrically reliable derived products from photographs" 
(Kiefer, Lillesand, 2000). Simply put, it concerns any kind of 
reconstruction of the tri-dimensional space through bi- 
dimensional images. 
Photogrammetry, nowadays, has many uses, such as: 
architecture, quality control, 3-D modeling and, of course, 
cartography. By the way, during many years, it was considered 
the most practical form of obtaining reliable topographie maps. 
That's why most mapping agencies still rely on its use for such 
purposes. 
Its main mathematical principles were established many years 
ago, and first implemented through optical and mechanical 
instruments. Those were, of course, very expensive, and the 
technology concerning their design and construction was 
somehow hidden. Science is a stone wall and one cannot build 
it all at once — that's why most photogrammetric instruments 
were built by the already active optical instruments industries 
who had the expertise in implementing complex machinery. 
Those who have tried to start building such aviographs from the 
scratch did not succeed. 
Most solutions were limited only to specific types of cameras 
and because of that, they were not very versatile. Everything 
had to be specifically designed for that particular 
photogrammetric system, otherwise, it could not be used. 
Those reasons (and many others) made photogrammetry a very 
expensive science. Poor countries had problems in acquiring 
those instruments. and in most cases they were at first 
destinated to their mapping agencies. University and research 
centers most of the time had to deal with second-hand 
equipment. This contributed to the lack of knowledge many 
professionals presented when having to use the most modern 
photogrammetric instruments. 
In the early nineties, however, a huge revolution was seen. It 
was the first time that computers were powerful enough to 
handle efficiently large image files. This turned available the 
first completely computer-based photogrammetric systems, 
which made, for the first time, Photogrammetry independent 
from optical and mechanical implementations. This new field 
(Digital Photogrammetry) relied on three basic principles: 
computer hardware (advanced enough for near-real time image 
processing), photogrammetric software — (mathematical 
implementations of the principles long ago discovered) and 
knowledge (to implement and use the software). Even at that 
time, the sum of all three factors was considerably cheaper than 
a single mechanical instrument. Some companies, many of 
them still new to that field of science. have invested heavily on 
digital implementations for photogrammetric principles, and 
lead the market to completely change the way tri-dimentional 
photogrammetric data were produced. 
Unfortunately, prices remained high and the access to digital 
stations continued to be limited only to those who could afford 
it. However, the technology was now open to everyone who 
had those three principles (hardware, software and trained 
personnel) already described. 
Based on previous experience, the idea or developing a 
photogrammetric softcopy kit at the Military Institute of 
Engineering was born. The details concerning its development 
will be better described on next topic. 
1.2 The E-FOTO Project