Scanning Manholes with CleverScan

Version: 2.5
Date: 24/11/2022

Technical overview

CleverScan is an intelligent manhole scanning system. The camera head hosts a processor with a fully loaded operating system that can analyze and preprocess a massive volume of high quality image and sensor data. CleverScan is the result of several years of joint research & development of two companies: The company KEPSO (owned by Peter Kessler) develops the hardware and electronic components whereas the company CDLab Ltd. – the producer of the pipe inspection software WinCan - is responsible for the development of the CleverScan control software.

The CleverScan system provides the user for a very interesting price the best trade-off between high mobility and simplicity on the one hand as well as speed and high image quality during the manhole inspection process on the other hand. Lots of manholes are located in areas where they cannot be accessed easily and directly from a TV truck with a complex camera equipment.

CleverScan is extremely mobile as it weighs only around 17.2 kg / 38 lbs and it is approximately 1.10 m / 3' 7" high and therefore can easily be put in a compact van and carried around by one person:

The camera system is fast and easy to handle as the software is perfectly integrated into the hardware: push a button and the camera automatically moves down from the cover to the bench/channel and back again. Afterwards the scan data are finalized within a few seconds before you're off to the next manhole. The image quality is one of the best on the market and can be obtained with a 5 HD camera system that creates a high resolution video, a 3D view of the manhole as well as an unfolded view of the manhole wall used for direct damage reporting.

Hardware

Portable manhole inspection system (weight app. 17.2 kg/38 lbs; height app.110 cm/3'7")
5 HD cameras (4 side & 1 front camera)
4 Laser sources for geometry measurement
Powered with a battery (lasting for approximately 1 working day in full inspection mode)
Built-in cable drum providing 10 m of cable length.
Adjustable tripod for quick setup on the manhole (diameter range up to 2 m)
Linux-based processing unit inside the camera head for flexible preprocessing of the raw data.
Automated inspection process with a minimum of user interaction (Duration app. 5 min).
Protection Class: camera head = IP67; control unit = IP54

Software

Full integration into the damage reporting with WinCan
Availability of all official manhole inspection standards world-wide
Full integration into ESRI GIS systems
3D-view of the manhole
HD Front Video
HD unfolded view of the manhole wall

Software Installation

The camera is delivered to the user in a ready-to-run state. The software installation package can be downloaded from the website www.cleverscan.com:

Right click on the icon CleverScanSetup_Launcher, hit the command Run as administrator and follow the steps given by the wizard in order to have the software properly installed:

Once the laptop software is installed, all the user needs to do is to connect laptop and camera via Ethernet (RJ45), turn on the camera, and launch the CleverScan software.

Software Update

Laptop

The CleverScan software checks for updates automatically and always suggests the user to update to the latest version as soon as available:

Camera

Each time the laptop is going to be connected to the CleverScan system, the camera checks whether there is a new version of the camera software available and suggests the user to update to the latest version.

Licensing

CleverScan is a registered trademark of KEPSO and CDLab Ltd.

Software parts

The CleverScan software has been designed and developed by CDLab, Switzerland and can be sub-divided into a camera part and a user interface part:

The camera software part is responsible for setting the scan parameters and controlling the cameras during the scan. It receives commands from the laptop and executes them.
The user interface itself supports two modes: scanning and displaying. During the scanning phase, the laptop software lets the user adjust the scan parameters, track the scan progress with live feed from the front lens and post-process the scan images. Afterwards the user may switch to the display mode to look at the results.

The commands and panels provided by the user interface are described in detail in the following chapter.

User Interface

When hitting the CleverScan desktop icon the software always starts running in the scanning mode.

Hit the button Display mode in the toolbar to switch from Scanning mode to Display mode:

Hit the button Scanning mode to switch back from Display mode to Scanning mode:

CleverScan user interface in scanning mode: use this mode to scan a manhole

CleverScan user interface in display mode: use this mode to view the manholes that have been scanned and to enter observations with a set of graphic tools:

Running a scan

Mind the following steps in order to get a proper scan result:

Remove the manhole cover and place the camera tripod on the manhole ring.
Turn on the camera and turn the camera head in order the vertical laser points at the position of the main outlet.
Check whether the camera head is able to move upward and downward pushing the corresponding buttons on the camera chassis.
Cover the tripod with the cone shaped hood that is a part of the equipment: this will prevent any disturbing light infall from the outside and thus is crucial for getting proper scan results.
Connect the camera to the laptop, using the Ethernet cable provided with the camera equipment.
Mind that you place the camera equipment, such as the Laser dot points to a solid surface on the manhole ground. The perpendicular Laser is unable to return a reliable manhole depth value in case it falls on a water surface.
Run the CleverScan software in scanning mode and hit the command button Connect in the toolbar (1). Click on Capture in the message box (2) to get connected to the camera device:

Make sure the camera settings have been adjusted accordingly and run the scan via the corresponding command (3).

You will be asked to enter a name for the manhole so it can be clearly identified. In addition you can add a picture of the manhole location and the manhole cover; separate buttons allow you to access different sources the pictures can be taken from (e.g. file explorer, integrated notebook cameras etc.):

Hit the button Start Scan to confirm your entries and to run the scan.

The scanning procedure is fully controlled by the camera device and doesn't require any additional manipulation from the part of the user.

Wait for the scan to complete. In the meantime, you may watch the progress through the live video and the camera position panel which shows the total and the current depth.

The raw data (images and other data files) obtained from the scan process in the field are saved to the default directory C:\CleverScan\images\[scan_name].

Scan Data, File Structure

The raw data for one manhole created during a scan in the field consist on a series of images and a video file:

These data can be copied on any office computer, post-processed and finally be imported into the inspection software WinCanVX.

Mind the folder structure as highlighted above in order to be able to post-process a scan. The software CleverScan strictly uses the corresponding file paths:

1.) Check the availability of the main folder C:\CleverScan

2.) Create as sub-folder C:\CleverScan\images where you have to copy the raw data obtained from the scans in the field. When opening the software CleverScan the manholes are thus automatically listed in the panel Workspace:

3.) Create a sub-folder C:\CleverScan\scans where the scan data will be put automatically after post-processing.

Post-processing a scan

The post-processing can be performed automatically each time a scan is completed if the option Auto process is enabled under Settings>Options>Processing:
On the other hand the user can also select the scan to be processed from the list of manhole scans shown in the workspace panel and press the button Process:

The list shows all manhole scans imported into the workspace folder: re-processed manhole data are marked with a BLUE folder icon whereas unprocessed scans get a GREY icon.

Simply double-click on a re-processed scan to get the result displayed on the different view panels:

Toolbars and panels

The CleverScan main interface provides two toolbars and a group of floatable panels that can be docked to and undocked from each other or arranged as tabs. You may move around, hide or unhide panels in order to get an individual view that finally allows you to work comfortably and efficiently. Simply us the menu View to show hidden panels again.
Below you can see a sample layout where the PointCloud View is used as a floating panel whereas the front view and the observation list panel are minimized to tab size. The rest of the panels are docked individually:

Grab each panel on the title bar, keep the left mouse key pressed and drop it wherever you prefer. A blue rectangle shows you the target area the panel finally is docked to. The result may look as shown below:

Changes on the panel layout can be saved as a specific user profile using the menu command Settings>Layout. On the following pages we will take a closer look at the toolbar buttons and the view panels.

Toolbar buttons

The horizontal toolbar (activated in scanning mode) provides command buttons in order to quickly adjust the camera settings prior to scanning:

This icon shows the vertical movement of the camera
Hit this button to establish a connection to the camera device
Start scanning
Adjust brightness of the lateral cameras
Adjust brightness of the bottom camera
Adjust brightness of the laser
Set the frequency of snapshots (e.g. 50 mm = 1 picture/5 cm)
Set the minimum distance between bottom camera and manhole ground
Set the cutting position when unfolding the manhole wall

The vertical toolbar (activated in display mode) provides specific commands to precisely describe the extent of an observation or a damage directly on the Side View via Drag & Drop:

Panels

The menu View provides 7 panels that can be individually activated or deactivated moved and resized within the interface or docked to each other. The following pages describe the scope of each panel in detail:

1.) The camera position panel helps to track the current depth in the display as well as in the scan mode. The display mode in addition allows the user to grab the camera icon directly on the panel and move it inside the manhole sketch. At the bottom of the panel the total and current depths are displayed.

2.) The side scan view shows the unfolded manhole wall and allows you to mark observations and take measurements using the provided toolbox. The vertical ruler is measuring the depth whereas the horizontal ruler determines the clock position of the observation.
The red line on this panel shows the current depth position and is synchronized with the other panels (i.e. front, depth, investigate and point cloud view): as soon as you move up or down within one of the synchronized panels the other panels automatically scroll up or down to the same depth level as well. This panel is especially helpful to quickly detect any kind of obvious defects.

3.) The video panel shows the live feed recorded during the scan. The user can scroll through the video using the navigation bar at the bottom of the video and take snapshots using the snapshot button (3a). The snapshots are saved at C:\CleverScan\scans\<scan_name> (default location).

4.) The investigation view shows the view to the manhole wall taken at the current depth. The user can pan from left to right hitting the corresponding arrow icons or scroll up and down with the arrow icons at the top or the bottom. Navigation inside this panel can also be done with the mouse wheel or the cursor keys.

The interface depicted below shows a layout using the rest of the panels:

5.) The point cloud view shows the points used to draw the mesh structure during post-processing. The user can move the point cloud up/down, forward/backward, rotate around its vertical axis and go back to the initial orientation by pressing the SPACE key at any time. This view can be used together with the side view in order to easily recognize specific node parts (e.g. cone, chamber, bench etc.).

6.) The front view shows the mesh from top and lets the user scroll in and out with the mouse wheel and look at the walls again by using the mouse dragging while holding the mouse left button down. The user may go back to the initial orientation by pressing the Space key at any time. The observations marked on the side view are displayed in this panel as well.

7.) The depth view shows four images taken at the current depth by the side cameras and stitched together. The user can change the cutting position using the horizontal scroll bar at the bottom of the panel and move up and down in the manhole using the vertical scroll bar. Navigation via mouse wheel is also possible within this view.

8.) The observation list shows all observations that have been drawn directly on the SideScan panel with the corresponding toolbox icon.

Creating and editing observations

Use the buttons on the vertical toolbar to mark observations on the SideScan panel. It is possible to mark either an observation spot, the extent of an observation/damage or to measure the dimension of manhole parts and intruding objects:

Select a graphic tool (1, 2) and draw the graphic over the corresponding damage location on the SideScan view (1a, 2a).
Select the pointer icon (3) and click on graphic which will then be highlighted accordingly. Right click on the highlighted graphic and select the context menu command Show/Edit info to describe the observation:

Observations are listed on the observation panel which can be reduced to tab size (4) right to the SideScan panel and opened whenever needed.

In order to move, resize or delete an observation, right click on the highlighted graphic and select the corresponding context menu command.

Measurement of object dimensions:

Manhole parts or objects inside the manhole can be measured using the ruler icon in the toolbox (1). Select the icon and draw a mesurement line over or around the desired object structure which is displayed in the SidScan view. The calculated value appears directly in a new text field:

The unfolded wall is always shown as a rectangle, for manholes with or without a cone. Different circumferences above and beneath a cone are taken into account and will return reliable values when measured on the SideScan view.

Import observations from CleverScan into WinCan VX

In order to import CleverScan data into a WinCan VX project, the user may either follow the stepwise procedure described below or use the command Bulk Import which is described in the next chapter.

1.) Create a project in WinCanVX, switch to the tab Nodes and create a new manhole (2a) or select an existing one (2b).

2.) Create a first observation using the predefined text General Observation (e.g. MGO in PACP 6) and write the text Inspection starts… into the field Remark.

3.) Go to the column Scan and double click on the grey bullet to import the CleverScan data into the project and to link it to the current observation:

4.) Browse to the folder C:\CleverScan\scan within the Windows dialog box, search for the subfolder with the name of the desired manhole and select the file export.x3d.

5.) Push the button Open in order to import the manhole data into the WinCan project. So the grey bullet within the Scan column is going to be replaced by a Scan icon:

6.) Double-click on the CleverScan icon to load the imported manhole data in the Display mode of the CleverScan software:

Import data from CleverScan via Bulk Import

In case you want WinCanVX to import at once a group of manholes that have previously been surveyed with CleverScan you just have to run the command Extended modules > CleverScan > Bulk Import:

The dialogue box that follows is listing all the manhole scans located in your working folder (e.g. C:\CleverScan), so you can select the group of manholes you want to import:

WinCanVX then creates the corresponding manhole records as well as a first observation for each manhole the CleverScan data will be attached to.

Select the desired manhole and double-click on the CleverScan icon to display its scan data:

Detect manhole parts

Manhole parts can easily be detected using a specific CleverScan functionality: hit the brick icon (1) in the vertical tool bar, draw the extent of the corresponding manhole part (e.g. cone) on the side view (2) and double check the result via the highlighted structure shown in the point cloud view (3).

The dialogue box that follows already contains some measurement data regarding the size of the manhole part; you will just have to complete these data and confirm (4):

WinCanVX automatically creates a new part in the manhole wizard and transfers all data from the CleverScan software:

Detect damages and describe observations

Detection of damages and describing observations is done from CleverScan: highlight the damage on the SideScan view picking a suitable icon from the vertical toolbar. WinCanVX then is going to open the damage catalogue that provides the predefined descriptions.

Depth value and clock position of an observation are transferred automatically from the CleverScan software to WinCanVX whereas the photos are taken from the SideScan and the InvestigateView, copied to the project and linked to the fields Photo1 and Photo2:

Detect manhole connections (inlets or outlets)

Manhole connections are treated as observations and thus are highlighted directly in CleverScan using the circle or ellipse icon: simply draw a circle/ellipse around the corresponding inlet/outlet; this is going to open the manhole catalogue where you have to pick the specific OP-Code(s) for connections.

As soon as you have confirmed one of the OP-Codes listed below, WinCanVX automatically creates a new record in the panel Inlets/Outlets and transfers all data from the CleverScan software:

WRC 4 : OP-Codes: CN* ; CX*, PJ*
WSA 2020: OP-Codes: HCN*, HCP*, HDC*, HDP*
NZPIM 2019-4: OP-Codes: HL, HLF, HLX, HDP

Print Manhole Reports with CleverScan Data

Activate the tab Printing and press the icon Printing Panel to print a CleverScan report from WinCan VX:

Check the report types Node Inspection, Node 2D Sketch, Node Pictures and Unfolded View in the report list on the left hand side of the dialog box. Selecting the report Unfolded View allows the user to select the page layout of the CleverScan report on the right hand side of the printing panel:

The Unfolded View represents the manhole wall that has been cut virtually at a certain clock position and rolled out to a flat surface.
Finally press the print button to create the report with the selected options. A sample CleverScan report page would look as illustrated below:

Menu bar

The menu bar at the top of the CleverScan interface is sub-divided into 4 groups:

The commands of each menu group are explained in detail on the following pages

Menu FILE

This menu group provides commands for file management:

Gallery: Open a dialogue and add a picture of the manhole cover to the current scan for quick identification:

Change workspace: Open a Windows dialogue and set the sub-folder the raw data are copied into after scanning (e.g. C:\CleverScan).
Import scan into workspace: Open a Windows dialogue and browse for the scan data you want to copy into the workspace directory.

Menu VIEW

This menu group allows the user to directly hide or unhide any view panel provided by the CleverScan software.

Restore to default: Decline any customized changes in the panel layout and set it back to default.
Keep aspect ratio: The user may choose whether he wants to keep the aspect ratio in side and depth views leaving spaces at the sides or at the top/bottom, or whether he prefers the image to cover the whole panel area using this option.
Connect video: The panel views are synchronized; so each of them shows the corresponding spot at the same location except the video panel. Synchronization of the video is switched off by default as it would slow down the performance of the software. The user may activate this feature whenever needed.
Color corrections: This command opens the dialogue box below, used for fine tuning of Brightness, Contrast or Gamma. The latter one allows automatic Brightness and Contrast corrections for each color value detected on the picture.

Menu SETTINGS

This menu group provides commands to check all kind of scanning options or camera settings and to change the panel layout of the user interface.

Options: Open the option panel in order to check or uncheck the most important scanning and camera parameters. We recommend to apply default values and to have automated procedures enabled.

Network setup: Connect to or disconnect from the CleverScan device
Presets: Create a new settings profile or load an existing one.

Layout: Save a new panel layout and load or delete an existing one.

Menu HELP

This menu group mainly provides commands used in case of trouble shooting. In addition the user can also get detailed information about the software and corresponding updates:

Show log: Show event protocol of the current CleverScan session.
Show log (previous): Show the event protocol of the previous CleverScan session
Open manual: Open the manual in the PDF-format. Make sure a PDF-reader (e.g. Adobe Reader) has been previously installed.
Version: Display the number of the current CleverScan software version.
Send us feedback: Report bugs using the predefined form in the dialogue
Check update: Download and install available update packages
What's new?: Show all new features added to the latest version
Copyright: Get copyright info about the CleverScan software

Troubleshooting

Below you can find a list of problems that may occur when working with the software module CleverScan:
Connection to the camera is not possible

Check whether network cable is connected
Check whether camera is turned on and has enough power
Check network setup and that network connection is captured
Restart the camera and the software

Camera does not move or scan fails

Try to move the camera up and down using the buttons on the camera unit
Especially check whether the camera cable is well lubricated!
Make sure the depth sensor does not touch the water surface
Make sure the depth sensor reads sensible values, if not move the camera head slightly to see if you can get sensible values
Restart the camera

Post-processing fails

Restart the software and try to post-process again
Repeat the scan

Visualization fails

Repeat post-processing of the scan

CleverScan cannot connect to Wincan VX

Quit the software if there is already running another instance of CleverScan
Restart Wincan VX

In case of further or different problems please contact the WinCan support team (support@wincan.com).

Service & Support

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