Google Earth

1. Google Earth Applications for Ham Radio Radioactive Networks Pty Ltd Darryl@radio-active.net.au

2. Who Am I? • Darryl Smith, VK2TDS, B.E. • Self Employed Positioning Consultant • Expert on Wireless Systems

3. The Talk • Introduction to Google Earth • Applications for Ham Radio • Tracking • Weather • Path Calculations • GIS • File Format - KML • Implementing Applications • VB.NET • ASP.NET

4. Introduction to Google Earth

5. Google Earth - Licensing • Free to Non-Commercial Uses • $20/Year upgrade for GPS functionality, and route editing • $400/Year Commercial per seat • Movie Making - $200/Year • Premium Printing - $200/Year • GIS Data Import - $200/Year • Traffic Counts Data - $200/Year • Shopping Centre Data - $200/Year • Server Licensable Separately

6. Applications for Ham Radio • APRS / Tracking • Weather • Path Calculations • GIS Applications

7. History • Originally released as Keyhole Viewer by ‘Keyhole’ • Most of the functionality was there in 2002, but Hardware and Networks were still lacking • Google purchased Keyhole in 2004, about the time of the DCC

8. Example of User • Beyond Blue – a suicide prevention group for farmers in the Australian Bush organized a drive of vintage tractors through the Simpson Desert • They wanted to get community involvement so they set up a Google Earth feed showing their current position

11. Fergy 8

12. APRS Tracking • APRS Tracking is possible in Google Earth. • I have been importing APRS data into my own server software very successfully.

17. Weather • Importing Weather Data into Google Earth from CWOP is fairly straightforward • Vectors can be added for wind direction and velocity • Graphics can show the rainfall • Icons can be used for Temperature • Graphs can be used to show trends • Text Boxes can be used to provide all data

18. Image Import • Overlays can be loaded periodically, such as with weather radar data • These images can refresh automatically periodically • Custom datasets can also be used

19. New Orleans – Post Katrina

21. St Catherines Island

22. Path Calculations • Paths can be drawn on the map. These can be locked to the ground, or at a height. This can be done to model antenna paths. • Without extra software it cannot do fresnel zones

24. Building Applications • Visual Basic • ASP.NET • PHP

25. Google Earth Back End • KML, an XML variant is used to draw • KML is hierarchical • That is elements can be added at any point…

26. File Format / Architecture • Essential Information :- • KML Tutorial • http://www.keyhole.com/kml/kml_tut.html • KML Specification • http://www.keyhole.com/kml/kml_doc.html

27. Place a line… Inside a Placemark <LineString> <altitudeMode>absolute</altitudeMode> <coordinates> -112.2550785337791,36.07954952145647,2357 -112.2549277039738,36.08117083492122,2357 -112.2552505069063,36.08260761307279,2357 -112.2564540158376,36.08395660588506,2357 </coordinates> </LineString>

28. Folders <Folder> <name>My House</name> . . . </Folder>

29. Network Link <NetworkLink> <refreshVisibility>0</refreshVisibility> <refreshInterval>121</refreshInterval> <Url> <href>//myServer/Googleearth/example.kml</href> </Url> <visibility>1</visibility> <name>TestNetworkLink</name> </NetworkLink>

30. Two Types of Interface • Standard and ‘View’ based • Standard outputs data regardless of zoom level, area of display etc. • ‘View’ sends the extents of the view to the server whenever the data is downloaded. • View allows only appropriate data to be sent

31. KML can point to a service. So if you pan around a map, when you stop, the service is asked to return a relevant KML file. It might, for example, take the bounding box of the area on screen and reach into a database to draw up data for that geography and place it on top of Google Earth.

32. Example of a use of View Based output • Take the example of using GoogleEarth to display Weather Data. • Using the extents data you can determine the ZOOM level. • You can then send the NOAA Weather station data when zoomed out • Then as you zoom in CWOP stations are also displayed

33. Building Applications A Simple KML File <Placemark> <description>Description</description> <name>Server Name</name> <point> <coordinates>151,-34,0</coordinates> </point> </Placemark>

34. Building Applications – VB.NET Dim XTW as new XMLTextWriter (Filename, Nothing) xtw.WriteStartElement("Placemark") xtw.WriteElementString(“description”, “Description Text”) xtw.WriteElementString("name", “Server name”) Xtw.WriteStartElement(“point”) Xtw.WriteElementString(“coordinates”, “151,-34,0”) Xtw.WriteEndElement ‘point Xtw.WriteEndElement ‘Placemark Xtw.flush Xtw.close

35. Building Applications – ASP.NET Private Sub Page_Load () Handles MyBase.Load With Page.Response .Clear(); .CacheControl = "no-cache“; .Expires = -1 .AddHeader("Pragma", "no-cache" & vbCrLf) .AppendHeader("content-disposition", "inline; filename=ge.kml") .Write("<?xml version=“1.0” ?>” & vbCrLf) line=“kml xlms=“http://earth.google.com/kml/2.0” >” .Write (line & vbCrLf) .WriteFile(“filename.kml" & vbCrLf) .Write("</kml>" & vbCrLf) End with End Sub

36. Building Applications – PHP - 1 • <?php • $lat_int = rand(-90, 90); • $lat_dec = rand(0, 1000000000); • $lon_int = rand(-180, 180); $lon_dec = rand(0, 1000000000); • $lat = $lat_int.'.'.$lat_dec; • $lon = $lon_int.'.'.$lon_dec; • $response = '<Placemark>'; • $response .= '<description>Generates a random placemark on each call to the server</description>';

37. Building Applications – PHP - 2 • $response .= '<name>Random KML server</name>'; • $response .= '<visibility>1</visibility>'; • $response .= '<Point>'; • $response .= "<coordinates>$lon,$lat,0</coordinates>"; • $response .= '</Point>'; • $response .= '</Placemark>'; • echo $response; ?>

38. $coords = preg_split('/,|\s/', $BOX); • $bl_lon = $coords[0]; • $bl_lat = $coords[1]; • $tr_lon = $coords[2]; • $tr_lat = $coords[3]; • // calculate the approx center • $userlon = (($coords[2] - $coords[0])/2) + $coords[0]; • $userlat = (($coords[3] - $coords[1])/2) + $coords[1];

39. Questions…