Government funds app to serve up high-res images via low bandwidth

Government funds app to serve up high-res images via low bandwidth

• By Joab Jackson
• Oct 26, 2004

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is funding development of software that would let users view large image files quickly and easily on their mobile devices.

The NGA Special Projects Office's Enterprise Directorate has awarded Idelix Software Inc. of Vancouver, British Columbia, and Research Systems Inc. of Boulder, Colo., a grant to intertwine their software.

For the project, Idelix will overlay its virtual magnification software on Research Systems' image-viewing software. Idelix's Pliable Display Technology application works like a virtual magnifying glass, providing greater detail of an image.

PDT works on small displays, such as those on personal digital assistants. Users can look at details while maintaining the ability to navigate around the image.

The Research Systems image-viewing software can accept images streamed in from a server located elsewhere.

Combining the two apps will help save bandwidth and speed access time because only those sections highlighted by PDT will require high-resolution imaging, according to the companies. The main image can be displayed in low resolution, which requires less bandwidth to ship to the end user.

The Research Systems' server can stream the needed high-res images as the user moves the PDT magnifier around the image.

The two companies demonstrated a prototype this month at the 2004 Geospatial Intelligence conference in New Orleans.