SPIDAR® SDK
FAQs
Q: Does a SPIDAR® SDK system require a computer to run?
A: Yes, to run the data acquisition software that the user has developed for the SPIDAR® SDK system, it requires a laptop or tablet attached to the NIC-500 with an Ethernet cable.
Q: Can SPIDAR® SDK system run wirelessly from the laptop/tablet?
A: A SPIDAR® SDK system cannot run wirelessly using the NIC-500’s built-in Wi-Fi system, but an external Wireless Access Point (WAP) can be connected to the NIC-500 to communicate with the laptop/tablet. However, setting that up is the responsibility of the user. Sensors & Software does not supply WAPs with the SPIDAR® SDK.
Q: What operating system (OS) is required on the computer/tablet used with a SPIDAR® SDK system?
A: There is nothing special to install on the computer/laptop, so, in theory, the operating system can be anything: Windows, Linux, Raspberry Pi or Mac, as long as it supports networking. Something with a web browser will be required to add the SDK activation to the NIC-500 and to put the system into SDK mode, but that is a one-time setup.
Q: Sensors & Software is supplying SPIDAR® SDK sample code written in Python, but can the user code their SPIDAR® SDK data acquisition program in any language?
A: Yes, providing that programming language supports basic networking.
Q: How can I correlate a GPR data trace with a GPS for positioning, or some other instrument acquiring data in parallel with the GPR?
A: We see one of the common uses of SPIDAR® SDK being the development of multi-sensor systems, with GPR being one of several data streams. When other instruments are acquiring data in parallel with the GPR, the best method to correlate the data streams is to use the data collection time stamps. The time stamp of a GPR trace can be extracted at any time during data collection and correlated with the time stamps from other devices, for example, a GPS.
Q: Can I use an odometer wheel to trigger GPR data collection?
A: Yes. Sensors & Software provides the pin-out and specifications of a port on the NIC-500 that can be used to trigger data collection by sending pulses from your own odometer device.
Note that the odometer wheels that Sensors & Software sells with our standard GPR systems pulse differently and therefore, will NOT work with a SPIDAR® SDK system.
Q: If I use the SPIDAR® SDK to develop a data acquisition program for my device that includes GPR and want to distribute it, are there any legal issues that I need to worry about? Do I need to pay Sensors & Software a fee or a royalty?
A: It is best to consult the SPIDAR® SDK Access and Use Agreement for details. Any software/systems you develop from the SPIDAR® SDK are yours to market, sell and distribute provided your end user access and use agreement is inclusive of the terms listed in SPIDAR® SDK Access and Use agreement.
Case Studies
7-Channel 1000 MHz array | SPIDAR® GPR
SPIDAR® systems network any number of Noggin and pulseEKKO PRO GPR systems together into a single data collection platform. While the possibilities are endless, the most common deployment is several systems with the same frequency spaced laterally to provide a swath of data in a single pass. This allows large areas to be surveyed in a fraction of the time compared to a single system.
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