13
ORTHOPHOTO PRODUCTION PROCEDURE
The Off-Line Orthophoto Printer requires profile data,
orientation data and the input photograph to produce an
orthophoto. At present the AS-11B-1 is being used to
produce the orientation and profile data. It is not within
the scope of this paper to fully describe the functions of
the AS-11B-1 so only a simplified outline of its use will be
presented here. (Figure 5)
The procedure starts with orienting a stereo pair of
the desired area, in the AS-11 analytical plotter. A model
coordinate system is established usually at the nominal scale
of the photography. Any desired corrections for atmospheric
refraction and lens distortion are entered at this point. The
photo to model orientation parameters are computed during
relative and absolute orientation. The orientation and
correction parameters are punched out on what is termed a
shutdown tape and saved as an input to the OOP. The model
is then profiled in the Y direction, profiles being simply a
series of Z measurements of the terrain surface taken at
regular intervals along a number of parallel evenly spaced
lines. This data is digitized and recorded on magnetic tape
for direct input to the OOP. The AS-11B-1 has the ability
to automatically gather profile data using an electronic
Correlator which greatly speeds up the data collection over
standard manual means. The spacing between profiles is
dependent on the accuracy desired from the orthophoto. The
magnetic tape containing the profile data, the shutdown tape,
and either photograph from the stereo pair are then taken to
the OOP. The four fiducials of the input photograph are
measured on the OOP photo carriage in order to establish the
interior orientation. The fiducial measurements along with
the shutdown tape are used by the OOP control system to re
establish the photo to model orientation and make the necessary
model to photo computations already explained. The following
generalized steps are then taken:
a. The output drum is initialized (i.e., set the zero x
zepo y position).
b. The desired print width, print speed, print scale
(model to drum) and a light exposure are established.
c. The model boundaries to be covered by the orthophoto
are input.