Introduction
When building up your digital twin on the Sitemark platform, it's important to ensure that your geospatial data uses the same reference throughout the different operations.
The reference layers are used in the platform as the source of truth that can be used across all of your future operations. This article will go into more detail about what they are and how you can manage them in the platform.
What are reference layers?
Reference layers are Site Design Files marked as reference layers. This means that we will use the location of the design file to correctly place new detections of your assets on the map. To ensure consistency in the digital twin of your site, you can not change the location of a reference layer after creating it.
Any type of design file can be marked as a reference layer:
PDF design files
DXF design files
Visual RGB Orthomosaïc design files created using an As-Built inspection
Using reference layers has the following benefits:
Multiple detections of the same asset can be linked in your digital twin, enabling features like Asset Timeline
Reference layers are visible by default on the map view
Reference layers are included by default when exporting a Schematic Report
Identifying reference layers
A reference layer can be identified by the thumbtack icon on the design file page of your site. The design file is marked as a reference layer if the icon is blue.
How to manage reference layers
Both new and existing Site Design Files can be marked as reference layers.
Marking a new Site Design File as a reference layer
Follow the guidelines for adding a new Site Design File, which you can find by clicking on this link.
Use the toggle for marking the design file as a reference layer
Marking an existing Site Design File as a reference layer
Select a site from your site overview.
On the site page, look for the button "Design Files" near the top of the page.
After clicking it, you will see the Design Files Manager with a list of all your existing design files.
Look for the design file you want to mark as a reference layer in this list.
Click the thumbtack icon on the card of the design file.
The design file will now be marked as a reference layer, indicated by the blue thumbtack icon.
Removing a reference layer
You can remove a Site Design File even though it is marked as a reference layer. You will receive a warning because it's possible that future operation results will no longer align with your digital twin if they use a different reference.
Similarly, you can mark a Site Design File as no longer being a reference layer without deleting it. To do so, click the blue thumbtack icon on a Site Design File in the Site Design files manager. You will receive a warning to confirm this change.
