PRODUCT DATA SHEET

ContextCapture ®

Software to Automatically Generate Detailed 3D Models from Photographs

Create 3D Models from Simple Photographs

With ContextCapture, you can quickly produce the
most challenging 3D models of existing conditions for
infrastructure projects of all types, derived from simple
photographs. Without the need for expensive, specialized
equipment, you can quickly create and use these highly
detailed 3D reality meshes to provide precise real-world
context for design, construction, and operations decisions
for use throughout the lifecycle of projects.
You can reliably and quickly produce 3D models of any Reality meshes are phototextured 3D models that provide precise real-world context.
scale, from objects of a few centimeters to entire cities processing units (GPGPU) and multi-core computing, ContextCapture can
using ContextCapture. There is no limit in the precision process about 15 gigapixels per day and per computer.
of the resulting 3D model, other than the resolution of
the input photographs. Integrate Models into any Workflow
You can access and share these rich models of existing conditions for use in any
Affordable, Precise 3D Models CAD or GIS workflow by easily and consistently sharing information, consumable
You can affordably develop precise reality meshes with less investment of time and accessible on desktop and mobile devices, in many formats, including for
and resources in specialized acquisition devices and associated training because native use within MicroStation®.
you can easily produce 3D models using photos taken with an ordinary camera, ContextCapture has two main modules, the Master and Engine. The Master
resulting in fine details, sharp edges, and geometric accuracy. provides a graphical user interface to define input data, processing settings,
submit processing tasks and monitor progress as well as visualize results.
Confidence to Model any Scale Project The Engine runs on a computer in the background, without user interaction and
You can confidently and reliably deliver highly detailed models in less time performs the computationally intensive algorithms. Thanks to this master-worker
without the risk of software limitations because you can automate the pattern, ContextCapture supports grid computing and dramatically reduces
production of models of virtually any size and/or precision, much faster than processing time simply by running multiple ContextCapture engines on several
previously possible. Thanks to general-purpose computation on graphics computers and working on a shared job queue.

Capabilities
“With ContextCapture, we’re able to automatically
Integrate Georeferenced Data
construct highly detailed 3D models of virtually ContextCapture also natively supports several types of positioning data including
any size for our clients, faster and at much less GPS tags and control points. It can also import any other positioning data through
position/rotation import or complete block import. This enables you to precisely
cost than with traditional methods. We think measure coordinates, distances, areas, and volumes.
ContextCapture is going to revolutionize the
Perform Automatic Aerotriangulation/Reconstruction
geospatial industry.“ Fully calibrate all images by automatically identifying the relative position and
— David Byrne orientation of each photo. Employ automatic 3D reconstruction, texture mapping,
Technical Director at AEROmetrex and highly accurate models thanks to ContextCapture’s unique 3D mesh retexturing
of ties and reconstruction constraints to ensure optimization algorithm. Because it
System Requirements
ensures optimal placement of 3D mesh vertices, it recovers ContextCapture Center
Minimum Hardware
finer details and sharper edges with fewer artifacts, significantly If you are creating extremely large models and want to take
At least 8 GB of RAM and NVIDIA or
AMD graphics card, or Intel integrated improving geometric accuracy. advantage of greater computational power, ContextCapture
graphics processor compatible with Center adds the capability to leverage grid computing to
OpenGL 3.2 with at least 1 GB of Generate 2D and 3D GIS Models
speed processing time dramatically. It does so by running
dedicated memory. Produce accurate georeferenced 3D models in a full range of
multiple engines on several computers, and associating them
Recommended Hardware
GIS formats including true orthophotos and the new I3S format
to a single job queue. If you have projects larger than 100
Microsoft Windows 7/8/10 from Esri, with tiling, and aerotriangulation export to KML and
gigapixels of imagery, use ContextCapture Center to
Professional 64-bit running on a PC XML. Includes an a coordinate system database interface to
with at least 16 GB of RAM, an 8-core seamlessly handle terabytes of input imagery.
ensure interoperability with your GIS solution of choice. You can
CPU and an NVIDIA GeForce GTX select from more than 4,000 spatial reference systems and add You can speed production with the ability to use the latest
780 Ti graphics card and data should
user-defined ones. And ContextCapture automatically adapts computing systems for desktop and cluster processing units
preferably be stored on fast storage
devices (fast HDD, SSD, or SAN). the resolution and precision of the model to the resolution and with the ability to leverage GPU computing, multi-core
spatial distribution of input photographs. This means it can computing, advanced bundle block adjustment, tiling
handle scenes with non-uniform resolution without requiring mechanisms, task queuing and monitoring, grid computing,
Find out about Bentley trade-offs in the overall efficiency in order to preserve a few and ultra-large project management.
at: www.bentley.com higher resolution scene regions.
Why ContextCapture?
Contact Bentley Generate 3D CAD Models
1-800-BENTLEY (1-800-236-8539)
ContextCapture is ideal for any scale of infrastructure
Produce 3D models using a full range of CAD formats, including
Outside the US +1 610-458-5000 project throughout design, construction, and operations.
multi-resolution meshes, 3D-neutral formats, digital surface
Its power, flexibility, and scalability turn simple photographs
Global Office Listings models, and dense 3D point clouds to ensure your models are
www.bentley.com/contact into true-to-life highly detailed 3D cities quickly and with
accessible in your modeling environment. You can even use
precision. ContextCapture is used by leading design,
these models natively within MicroStation.
construction, mapping, and surveying professionals including
Publish and View Web-ready Models Nokia, Blom, Asia Air Survey, Airbus Group, AEROMetrex,
Produce models of any size that are optimized for Web publishing, and many more in Europe, America, and Asia to generate
and that can be viewed using a free Windows or Mac viewer high resolution photorealistic 3D models.
or using a free Web viewer. This enables instant sharing and
visualization of 3D models with any stakeholder.

CAPABILITIES CONTEXTCAPTURE CONTEXTCAPTURE CENTER

Imagery dataset size per project Up to 100 Gigapixels Unlimited

Mesh export formats (3MX/I3S/OBJ/FBX/STL/DAE/OSGB) * *
Colored point cloud export (POD/LAS) * *
True orthophoto / 2.5D Digital Surface Model (TIFF/GEOTIFF/KML) * *
Georeferencing * *
Parallel (cluster) processing for unlimited scalability *
Software development kit *

Perform automatic aerotriangulation of photos. Models as large as city-scale can be reliably

produced and shared.

© 2016 Bentley Systems, Incorporated. Bentley, the “B” Bentley logo, ContextCapture, ProjectWise Connection Services, and MicroStation are either registered or unregistered
trademarks or service marks of Bentley Systems, Incorporated or one of its direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. Other brands and product names are trademarks of their
respective owners. CS8205 6/16