Getting Your Message Across with STK

Getting Your Message Across
with STK
Josh Poley
AGI
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The Challenge
• Complex analysis is complex to explain
• Two audiences
– Technical
– Non-technical
• Clear understanding required by both
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Making The Scenario
• Labels
– Only show necessary ones
– Use Maximum Viewing Distance
• Trajectories
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–
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Don’t show unnecessary tracks
Use thick lines
Show full orbits
Don’t show lead on aircraft, ground vehicles
• Colors
– Bright colors (cyan, green, yellow)
– Avoid reds, grays, dark blues
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Making The Scenario
• Models
– Use best models
• Standard set extensive
• More on Web
• Conversion tools available
– Use textures when possible
– Use moving parts (articulations)
• Solar arrays track Sun
• Antenna’s point
– Use attach points
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Making The Scenario
• Model scaling
– Satellites
• Scale 4 (10,000X) for space scenarios
• Scale 0 (actual) for launch or close views
– Ground objects
• Scale 2 (100X) for space scenarios
• Scale 1 (10X) or 0 for close views
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Making The Scenario
• Coverage
– Save pre-computed
– Use smooth contours
– Set up color ramp
• Red to green = bad to good
• Show legend
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Making The Scenario
• Timing
– Set start AND end animation time (loop or stop)
– Set refresh delta to 0.03 (30 frames/sec)
• Map details
– Coastlines, international borders, islands, lakes, and
provincial borders
• Globe
– Use terrain and imagery where possible
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Sources Of Terrain & Imagery
Where to find it
• Several sites offer it
– USGS Geographic Data Download
http://edc.usgs.gov/geodata/
– USGS Seamless Data Distribution Center
AGI offers it
• Planet Earth
• World Terrain
• Globeserver
http://agi.com/earthimagery
http://seamless.usgs.gov/
– NGA Raster Roam
http://geoengine.nima.mil/
Prepare it for conversion
• Some third-party tools are helpful
– Global Mapper
http://www.globalmapper.com/
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Lighting Is Important
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Making The Scenario
• Use stored views
• Create camera paths
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Dynamic Data Display
• “Data Display” page of vehicle 3D properties
• Choice of three locations:
– any corner of 3D window
– bar alongside 3D window
– relative to vehicle’s position in 3D window
• Can use same display twice for drop-shadow effect
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Time To Present
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Choose Your Method
• Reports and graphs
• Still pictures
• Video
• VDF - completely
interactive 4D window
• Automated demo in STK
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Graphs And Reports
• Reports and graphs
– File > Export> Report
– Graph Toolbar – Copy to
Clipboard
• External graphing
– Excel
– MATLAB
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Graphs And Reports
• Good for
– Printouts and leave-behinds
– PowerPoints
• Considerations
– Static
– Anyone can make a picture
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Pictures Hints
• Anti-aliasing turned on
• Use a stored view with good angle
• Previous hints
– Lighting, terrain, models
– Labels: use offset and make bold
– Colors
• 45 deg field-of-view or greater
• Increase star size at high DPI
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Pictures
• Good for
– Printouts and leave-behinds
– PowerPoints
• Considerations
– Static
– Anyone can make a picture
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Videos Hints
• Use viewpaths
• Use standard window size (320x240 or 640x480)
• Don’t compress at record time
– Dump to uncompressed AVI or bmps
– Windows Media Encoder -> wma files
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Videos
• Good for
– Powerpoints
– Leave-behind CDs/DVDs
– Can be reused by anyone
• Considerations
– Straw-view of entire situation
– Videos are becoming common
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VDF?
• Free interactive 4-D
• Anyone can use it
• Review of STK analyses
– Follow stored camera paths
and viewpoints
– Pan and zoom
– Control animation
– Screen shots and movies
• Small data files
• Embeds in Active X
applications
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Basics Of VDF
• Optimize for size
• Advanced options
– Computational data
– General
– Graphics
• Password protect
• Estimate for size
• Save!
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Globeserver in VDF
• The Globeserver globes
– Imagery (globes, inlays and
maps)
– Terrain
• Advantages
– Smaller file size
– Streaming terrain and
imagery
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VDFs In PowerPoint
•
Can be added to any Active X enabled application
•
Add the AGI Viewer Control to Slide
– Turn on Control Toolbox Toolbar
– More controls
• AGI Viewer Control 7
– Draw the region
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VDFs In PowerPoint
• VDFs can open
automatically!
• Procedure:
– Add the AGI Viewer
Control to Slide
– Right click for
Properties
– Add the File location
– PptPreloadMode to
True
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An Example VDF
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VDFs
• Good for
– PowerPoints
– Leave-behind CDs/DVDs
– Flexible and technical situation observing
• Considerations
– A level of user sophistication
– All values are set . . . Can’t toggle things
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Software Demo
• Automate for ease of demo
• Slow mouse movements
• Minimize panels
• Orient to screen
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Software Demo
• Good for
– Controlled demo situations
– Easy to tell a story (do a build up)
– Flexible and technical situation observing
• Considerations
– A high level of user sophistication
– Not repeatable by everyone
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Summary
• Foundation is great scenario
• Know your presentation options
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AGI
Reports and graphs
Images
Videos
VDFs
Software demo
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3D Model Specularity
• Locate hints.txt
• Remove leading
pound signs
• Texturemaps
now look shiny
<STK install dir> \STKData\VO\hints.txt
###########################################
#
#BeginVendor "Analytical Graphics, Inc."
#
#
BeginRenderer "General"
#
#
separateSpecularOnOldModels True
#
#
EndRenderer
#
#EndVendor
#
###########################################
BeginVendor "AccelGraphics, Inc."
...
(Leave the rest of the file intact.)
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Thank You
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