xyHt

10/06/2025

For decades, Topcon has been a trusted name in precision optics, GNSS receivers, and machine control. Its equipment became a familiar sight on survey crews, construction sites, and agricultural fields across the globe. Over the past decade, the company leaned heavily into high-growth sectors such as machine control and precision agriculture, expanding its presence in construction and farming.

Now, in addition to those strengths, Topcon is charting a path that places geomatics at the center of its next phase—positioning it as a driver of innovation, integration, and long-term growth.

Discover how Topcon is reclaiming the Geomatics Frontier:

For decades, Topcon has been a trusted name in precision optics, GNSS receivers, and machine control. Its equipment became a familiar sight on survey crews, construction sites, and agricultural fields across the globe. Over the past decade, the company leaned heavily into high-growth sectors such as...

10/03/2025

Appearances can be deceptive. If you’re thinking that this is just another total station, you might be pleasantly surprised by the following look under the hood. But why a new total station? Didn’t the technology of such instruments peak in the 1990s? That misconception is a key part of the story.

It was inevitable that technological advances, like AI, would be integrated into these ubiquitous and essential instruments. Various product lines had not added significantly new models in many years. A new wave was overdue, and the new Leica TS20 from Leica Geosystems is one of the first to emerge from this new wave.

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Just when you thought there was nothing new in the world of Total Stations… Appearances can be deceptive. If you’re thinking that this is just another total station, you might be pleasantly surprised by the following look under the hood. But why a new total station? Didn’t the technology of su...

10/03/2025

The geospatial industry is moving through a period of profound transformation. Advances in reality capture, artificial intelligence, and cloud integration are converging with urgent global challenges, from climate resilience to urbanization. In this moment, few figures are as influential as Jack Dangermond, founder and CEO of Esri. For more than fifty years, he has guided the evolution of geographic information systems from a specialized tool to a global platform shaping decisions across governments, businesses, and communities.

In an extended conversation with xyHt, Dangermond shared not just technical observations but a sweeping vision for the future of GIS.

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The geospatial industry is moving through a period of profound transformation. Advances in reality capture, artificial intelligence, and cloud integration are converging with urgent global challenges, from climate resilience to urbanization. In this moment, few figures are as influential as Jack Dan...

10/02/2025

At the San Diego Convention Center in July, thousands of GIS professionals, developers, and geospatial newcomers descended upon the 2025 Esri User Conference, an event one company booth dubbed “the Woodstock of GIS.” It’s an apt comparison: energetic, communal, buzzing with shared ideals and grounded in decades of serious, technical evolution. But unlike Woodstock, the Esri UC is far from chaotic. Here, precision is the prerogative.

This year’s plenary sessions, led by Esri founder Jack Dangermond and a host of product and domain experts, delivered a clear theme: the future of geospatial technology is both powered by AI and deeply rooted in field reality.

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At the San Diego Convention Center in July, thousands of GIS professionals, developers, and geospatial newcomers descended upon the 2025 Esri User Conference, an event one company booth dubbed “the Woodstock of GIS.” It’s an apt comparison: energetic, communal, buzzing with shared ideals and g...

09/29/2025

Not every project needs to be rapidly processed on site; some can afford extra time to fully process, classify, extract, analyse, etc. While other applications can greatly benefit from near-real-time results. However, no matter what step in the workflow, from capture to deliverables, improved processing, especially where machine learning/AI is applied, the ante is being upped. Utilizing various processing resources along the way can boost efficiency, leverage the latest solutions, and facilitate scalability.

Before we enter the cloud vs. local debate, let’s look at the rise of “edge computing” for RC applications. While not a new approach, what we’re seeing lately is the addition of edge computing for even small form RC hardware, such as drone payloads.

Continue reading ➡️ https://www.xyht.com/spatial-itgis/the-cloud-the-edge-and-the-beast/

09/22/2025

A new solution for construction layout, interior finishing, MEP, and templating, incorporates so many clever innovations that it is almost like a whole new class of instrument.

Read more: https://www.xyht.com/magazine/magazine-magazine/having-a-ball-doing-layout/

09/08/2025

Ready to lead in the geospatial field? Earn your Master of Geographic Information Science and Technology from Ohio State: 100% online, flexible, and built for working professionals.

Find out more ➡️ https://online.osu.edu/masters-degree/master-geographic-information-science-technology/?lead_source=Response-Solutions&utm_campaign=oaa_oso_mgist-student-recruitment_fy26_xyht&channel=Other-Paid&utm_source=social&utm_medium=Social

08/22/2025

Live Webinar | Wednesday, August 27 | 1:00 PM ET / 10:00 AM PT

In this exclusive webinar presented by Inside GNSS and Inside Unmanned Systems, Trimble Applanix and industry partners showcase how CenterPoint RTX and APX RTX solutions are redefining what's possible in UAV-based mapping, delivery, and inspection.

Register Here: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6266076533676267352

07/14/2025

GNSS professionals are invited to a specialized webinar designed to help you unlock peak precision by exploring two fundamental pillars: your GNSS technology and the availability of robust correction data. Whether executing surveys for the geospatial and construction fields, guiding autonomous machinery, or ensuring the structural integrity of a new build, the demand for accuracy has never been higher.

This practical masterclass is your opportunity to gain actionable strategies, empowering you to make smarter technology investments and truly optimize your operations. Offering two sessions on July 23 and 24th, our expert will help you understand the science behind precision positioning to be leveraged for your future success.

Read more ➡️ https://www.xyht.com/sponsored/join-our-masterclass-unlocking-peak-precision/

Ready to elevate your precision? Register now to secure your spot: https://go2.trimble.com/GNSS-multitool.html?utm_medium=display&utm_source=product&utm_campaign=TAP_Multitool_25&utm_content=LP&utm_term=xyht_display_ad_advertorial

06/25/2025

Legal Boundaries: Start with “Why”

Several years ago, Simon Sinek gave a TED Talk on marketing—a business, services, products, even ideas and beliefs. Although his talk was focused on business success and inspiring leaders, the message, “start with why,” is easily transferable to winning in court as an expert. Since the essence of expert witness testimony is opinion-based, it is crucial to that testimony to have the ability of explain the “why” of your opinion. As Sinek reiterated in his talk, people do not buy “what” you do or “how” you do it—they buy the “why.” This will be true in court as well.

https://www.xyht.com/education/start-with-why/

06/21/2025

Path planning algorithms will bolster beyond visual line of sight UAV flights

While Canada and Europe are already relaxing their rules on flying UAVs outside the visual range of pilots, BVLOS (beyond visual line of sight) operations in the U.S. may still take some time for government approval due to airspace safety and security considerations. This is, of course, another classic case of technological innovation that’s out of step with bureaucratic rule making as more advanced algorithms for autonomous UAV navigation have now become more widely adopted and easier to deploy.

https://www.xyht.com/aerialuas/not-just-winging-it/

06/18/2025

Finding and Preserving Lost Black Cemeteries: UAVs and ground-penetrating radar are making the work more successful and efficient

Communities across the country are rediscovering forgotten and lost Black cemeteries and documenting their history, using technology to map above and below ground. In late 2022, Congress passed the African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act, that will provide resources to locate, document, and preserve these often unmarked or abandoned sites through 2027.

https://www.xyht.com/aerialuas/finding-and-preserving-lost-black-cemeteries/