Advanced Analytics

Advanced Analytics generates raster products to help review point-cloud quality and flight-line coverage. It is available during Geocoding (TVSP, SPX) and Strip Align (SADJ) processing. Results are included in the corresponding processing report and can optionally be added to the project map.

Available Products

Processing Options

Run Advanced Analytics - Generates the analytics products supported by the selected workflow and includes the results in its report. Analytics adds processing steps to the job.

Add Analytics to Map - Adds successfully generated analytics rasters to the project map when you select Complete Job in Job Manager. This option is available only when Run Advanced Analytics is selected.

Clearing Add Analytics to Map does not disable analytics, remove its report content, or prevent the raster files from being saved.

Initially, Run Advanced Analytics is selected and Add Analytics to Map is cleared. LP360 saves these preferences separately for Geocoding and Strip Align.

Surface Precision

Surface Precision is a color-coded GeoTIFF generated using the Global SDASN surface-precision product. It highlights cells with higher or lower surface-precision values relative to a sensor-based threshold.

The automated analytics product is global Surface Precision, not a separate inter-swath or per-flight-line intra-swath product. Although the Geocoding report lists global, inter-swath, and intra-swath thresholds, the global threshold controls the color scale of this product.

Surface Precision Color Scale 

The same four-color scale is used in the Geocoding and Strip Alignment reports. In the table below, T is the global pass/fail threshold shown in the report.

For example, with a 2 cm threshold, green represents values below 2 cm, yellow represents 2 cm to below 4 cm, orange represents 4 cm to below 6 cm, and red represents 6 cm or greater.

Use this product to identify areas for closer inspection. A surface-precision result does not, by itself, establish the absolute positional accuracy of the point cloud.

Flight Line Overlap

Available in Geocoding analytics, Flight Line Overlap counts the distinct point source IDs in each raster cell. It is saved as a floating-point grid, with a companion header file.

The report preview uses the following colors. Flight lines and arrows indicating flight direction are drawn in black.

This is a count of point source IDs, not a point-density measurement or an overlap percentage. Assign unique point source IDs to flight lines so the counts represent the intended flight-line overlap.

Cell Size and Thresholds 

LP360 automatically selects the analytics cell size from the point-cloud density.

Sensor-based global thresholds are selected using the sensor model in the cycle's System\SystemConfiguration.json file.

Refer to the settings recorded in the report for the values applied to a particular job.

Advanced Analytics in Geocoding

Geocoding analytics evaluates the generated LAS files and produces Surface Precision and Flight Line Overlap. Cell size is selected using the density calculated for the Geocoding point-cloud statistics.

The Geocoding Report includes an Advanced Analytics section listing density, cell size, thresholds, and product status. Successfully generated previews appear on separate Surface Precision and Flight Line Overlap pages with their color scales. These results are part of the Geocoding report, not a separate analytics PDF.

When you select Complete Job, the generated rasters and their companion files are transferred to the flight folder's SurfacePrecision and OverlapMap subfolders. This occurs whether or not Add Analytics to Map is selected.

If map loading is enabled, layer names use the geocoded LAS layer name followed by _surface_Precision or _overlap.

Advanced Analytics in Strip Align (SADJ) 

Strip Align generates Surface Precision for the input point clouds before alignment and for the output LAS files after alignment. Flight Line Overlap is not generated by SADJ analytics.

The same cell size and global threshold are used for both phases. Cell size is based on the selected non-Fixed alignment layers. When multiple sensor sources are involved, LP360 uses the strictest (smallest) global default threshold across those sources.

If a source's cycle folder, configuration file, or sensor model cannot be resolved, LP360 uses a 2 cm fallback for that source and displays a warning. The threshold policy and fallback details are also recorded in the report.

The Strip Alignment Report includes the analytics settings, followed by separate BEFORE Strip Alignment and AFTER Strip Alignment pages. A common color scale follows the after-alignment preview, allowing the two phases to be compared using the same ranges.

Compare corresponding areas to identify where surface precision changed. Review the other alignment results as well; the Surface Precision images are not a standalone measure of absolute accuracy or a guarantee that every feature is correctly aligned.

The GeoTIFFs remain in the job working folder under AdvancedAnalytics\Before and AdvancedAnalytics\After. If Add Analytics to Map is selected, completing the job adds layers named from the output layer followed by _surface_Precision_Before and _surface_Precision_After.

Reviewing Results and Missing Products 

When a map layer name is already in use, LP360 appends a numeric suffix. Use the report's color scale to interpret its previews; the overlap color scale described above applies to the report preview.

A missing or failed analytics product does not, by itself, fail the Geocoding or Strip Align processing job. Check product status in the report and messages in Job Manager if an expected result is absent. A missing preview does not necessarily mean that the raster was not generated.

If an output cannot be transferred or added to the map, Job Manager records a message. For Geocoding, an output that cannot be transferred remains in the job working folder. Keep the .flt and its companion .hdr file together when copying or opening a Flight Line Overlap grid.

Default Raster and Map Layer Names 

Analytics raster filenames and map layer names follow different conventions. Raster filenames identify the product and processing timestamp. Map layer names are based on the associated LAS output layer.

Raster Filenames

The timestamp identifies when the product was generated, rather than the flight acquisition time. Surface Precision filenames use a UTC timestamp in YYMMDD_HHMMSS format. For example, AdvancedAnalytics_sdasn_global_261014_223000.tif identifies a product generated on October 14, 2026, at 22:30:00 UTC.

For Strip Align, the Before and After folders distinguish the two phases; the raster filenames do not include _Before or _After. Preserve the folder structure when copying these results.

Flight Line Overlap grids have companion files with the same base name. Keep the .flt and required .hdr file together, along with any other accompanying files.

Map Layer Names

When Add Analytics to Map is selected, completing the job adds the following layers. Replace <LAS layer> with the geocoded LAS layer name, or <output layer> with the Strip Align output layer name.

If a layer name is already in use, LP360 appends the first available numeric suffix, such as _1 or _2. This changes the map layer name, not the raster filename.