← XGRIDS
FIELD & PROCESSING GUIDE
A practical, free walkthrough of capturing with XGRIDS Lixel scanners and PortalCam — from field technique and georeferencing to processing in LixelStudio and Lixel CyberColor. No sign-up required.
01 · BEFORE YOU SCAN
Every XGRIDS capture can feed two different pipelines from the same scan: a survey-grade point cloud in LixelStudio, and a photorealistic 3D Gaussian Splatting scene in Lixel CyberColor (LCC). Decide which you need before you start, because it shapes your route, your overlap and your accuracy plan.
The two workflows
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Point cloud (LixelStudio): survey-grade LAS output for measurements in CAD, GIS and BIM.
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3D Gaussian Splatting (LCC): photorealistic, navigable scenes for visualization, the web and BIM.
Pre-scan checklist
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Charge every battery and clear enough storage for the whole site.
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Plan a route that loops back to where you started.
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Confirm your RTK or GNSS setup if you need real-world coordinates.
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Walk the space once to spot narrow transitions, glass and reflective surfaces.
02 · FIELD TECHNIQUE
SLAM scanners track their own position as you move, so smooth, deliberate capture matters more than the hardware. Most accuracy problems come from movement and route, not the device.
Movement & posture
Walk at a steady pace, keep the scanner stable, and avoid fast rotations. Keep the LiDAR’s view of the environment open — don’t cover the sensor or scan with your body between it and the surfaces you care about.
Route planning & loop closure
Plan a continuous path that returns to a previously scanned spot. This ‘loop closure’ lets the software recognize where it has been and correct accumulated drift. Avoid dead-ends you can’t scan your way back out of.
Transitions & challenging environments
Slow down through doorways, stairwells and tight transitions. Give featureless corridors, large open areas and glass extra overlap and slower movement — SLAM relies on visible geometry, and those environments give it little to lock onto.
03 · POSITIONING
If your deliverable needs real-world coordinates, plan georeferencing before you scan — it is hard to add convincingly afterwards.
When it matters
Relative accuracy — how consistent the scan is with itself — is enough for internal measurements and visualization. Absolute accuracy, matching true real-world coordinates, requires RTK, PPK or ground control.
RTK vs PPK
RTK corrects satellite positions live during the scan; PPK applies the same corrections afterwards in processing. XGRIDS scanners such as the Lixel K2 (built-in RTK) and L2 Pro (RTK fusion) support real-time correction.
Ground control & the hybrid approach
Surveyed ground control points (GCPs) give the highest absolute accuracy and a way to verify results. In practice, a hybrid of RTK plus a few well-placed GCPs is the most robust approach for survey work.
04 · LARGE PROJECTS
Big sites are captured as several segments and merged into one project with Map Fusion, which recognizes overlapping areas automatically.
Plan overlap & connection points
Give adjacent segments generous overlap through shared, feature-rich areas. Those connection points are where Map Fusion aligns segments, so avoid joining two segments across a blank wall or empty space.
Fuse & manage data
Run Map Fusion in LixelStudio or LCC to stitch segments into one georeferenced model. Manage storage deliberately — fused, multi-segment projects are data-heavy, especially at 3DGS quality.
05 · PROCESSING
LixelStudio — point cloud
Import the raw scan, run the SLAM solve to build the registered cloud, fuse segments if needed, check accuracy, then colorize, clean and crop before exporting LAS for CAD, GIS and BIM.
Import into LCC Studio and choose a reconstruction workflow: single model, Map Fusion, aerial-ground fusion, aerial, or 2D video. Tune the settings that fit your hardware — VRAM limit, Portability (SH on/off) and maximum Gaussian splats — then export .lcc2, .ply or .usd, or publish to LCC Cloud.
06 · COMMON MISTAKES
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Moving too fast or rotating sharply, which introduces drift.
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Never closing the loop, so accumulated drift is never corrected.
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Skipping RTK or GCPs when the deliverable needs real-world coordinates.
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Too little overlap between segments, so Map Fusion can’t align them.
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Ignoring glass and featureless spaces that give SLAM nothing to track.
FAQ
Is this XGRIDS guide free?
Yes. The entire guide is free to read with no sign-up or account required.
Do I need RTK for every scan?
No. RTK is only needed when your deliverable requires absolute, real-world coordinates. For relative-accuracy measurements and visualization, it is optional.
How do I avoid drift when scanning?
Move smoothly, avoid sharp rotations, and always close the loop by returning to a previously scanned spot. On long or open scans, use RTK to constrain absolute position.
Can one scan produce both a point cloud and a Gaussian splat?
Yes. Process the same capture in LixelStudio for a survey-grade LAS point cloud, and in Lixel CyberColor (LCC) for a 3D Gaussian Splatting scene.
Which XGRIDS scanner is best for large sites?
The Lixel L2 Pro, with its long range and drone and vehicle mounting, is best suited to large-area capture; multiple segments are then merged with Map Fusion.