Generate a DSM mesh using ArcGIS Reality for ArcGIS Pro—ArcGIS Pro

Available with Standard or Advanced license.

Available for an ArcGIS organization with the ArcGIS Reality license.

A digital surface model (DSM) mesh is a 2.5D textured model of the project area, in which the adjusted images are draped on a TIN version of the DSM extracted from the overlapping images. The DSM Mesh wizard simplifies the creation of the DSM mesh product by providing a streamlined workflow with preconfigured parameters for creating an output. To create a DSM mesh product, a DSM that is derived from the adjusted block of overlapping images is required. As a result, a DSM is generated as a part of the DSM mesh generation process even if it was not previously selected as a product.

To generate a DSM mesh using the ArcGIS Reality for ArcGIS Pro DSM Mesh wizard, complete the steps below.

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Before you begin the workflow, ensure that you have created a Reality mapping workspace and completed the block adjustment process.
DSM mesh generation is recommended using nadir imagery.
The minimum number of images required to generate a DSM or DSM mesh product is two overlapping images. Minimum forward overlap recommended is 60 percent. Product quality is increased using more images and higher overlapping percentages.
When processing satellite imagery in Reality mapping to produce a DSM or a DSM mesh product, the planimetric (x,y) coordinate system must be defined using the WGS84 UTM reference frame, and the vertical coordinate system (VCS) must be EGM96 or WGS84 (ellipsoid).
When processing satellite imagery in Reality mapping to produce a DSM or a DSM mesh product, product boundary, water body, and correction features must be in the WGS84 UTM reference frame, and the VCS is optional.

On the Reality Mapping tab, click the DSM Mesh button in the Product group.
The Reality Mapping Products Wizard window appears.
Click Shared Advanced Settings.
The Advanced Product Settings dialog box appears, where you can define parameters that will impact the Reality mapping products that will be generated. For a detailed description of the advanced product settings options, see Shared Advanced Settings in the wizard.

The Quality and Scenario Type settings are automatically set by the application and should not be changed to ensure optimum performance and product quality. However, if you want to generate a reduced resolution product for a quick test, the Quality setting can be lowered. See Shared Advanced Settings in the wizard for more information about the impact of various quality settings on product generation.

For Product Boundary, select a feature class identifying the output product extent from the drop-down list, or click the Browse button and browse to and select one.
It is recommended that you provide a project boundary for the following reasons:
- Define the proper output extent—When you do not define a product boundary, the application automatically defines an extent based on various dataset parameters that may not match the project extent.
- Reduce processing time—If the required product extent is smaller than the image collection extent, defining a product boundary reduces the processing duration and automatically clips the output to the boundary extent.
To specify a water body feature layer, click the Browse button next to Waterbody Features.
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If water body features, such as lakes and rivers, exist within the project area, it is recommended that you add a precreated 3D feature class identifying those areas, using the Waterbody Features setting to hydrologically enforce those features in the output product. Use the stereoscopic compilation in ArcGIS Image Analyst to generate the 3D feature layer that identifies water body features. This ensures that there will be no image stretching around hydrological feature boundaries in the output due to differences in elevation between the derived DSM height and the feature class height values.
The Waterbody Features options are Precise and Coarse. Use the Precise option when the 3D polygon being added accurately defines the shape of the hydrological features in the project area. Precise polygons can be created using the stereoscopic compilation in ArcGIS Image Analyst. A precise water body polygon can also be derived from national mapping organizations with open data policies. Additionally, it can be created using 2D heads-up digitizing from an authoritative, orthorectified imagery that is temporally similar, with the aid of a DEM.
Use the Coarse option when a generalized 3D polygon is being used as the water body feature. Generalized polygons can be created using a 2D heads-up digitizing workflow. If 2D heads-up digitizing is used to create a precise or coarse polygon, it must be converted to 3D (x,y,z) before it can be used as a water body feature. See Introduction to 2D and 3D features for additional information about converting a 2D feature to 3D. When using a coarse water body feature, the shape of the polygon must follow the shape of the water body feature for best results.
For Processing Folder click the browse button , browse to disk, and define the Reality mapping temporary folder location. The temporary files required for generating 2D or 3D products will be stored here.
Accept all other default values and click OK.
The Advanced Product Settings dialog box closes, and you are returned to the Products Generation Settings page in the Reality Mapping Products wizard.
In the Products Generation Settings window, click Next to go to the DSM Mesh Settings page.
On the DSM Mesh Settings page, you can select multiple formats for processing.
Check the check box next to the format or formats required.
SLPK is the default option. Both SLPK and 3D Tiles are natively supported mesh formats in ArcGIS Pro.
The OBJ mesh output format can also be simultaneously generated, but not visualized, in ArcGIS Pro. If the OBJ or 3D Tiles format is selected, the derived product can be accessed from the <workspace>\Products\Reality\Results\DSM_Mesh folder on disk.
Click Finish to initiate product processing.
When processing is complete, if selected, the SLPK format DSM mesh product is added to the Reality mapping container in the Meshes folder in the Catalog pane. All other formats can be accessed from the <workspace>\Products\Reality\Results\DSM_Mesh folder on disk.
To visualize the generated DSM mesh product, right-click the DSM_Mesh.slpk file in the Mesh folder, and from the drop-down menu, click Add to New > Local Scene.
To visualize the generated 3D tiles mesh, in the Catalog pane, map to the DSM_mesh folder path <workspace>\Products\Reality\Results\Mesh, expand it, and do the following:
1. Expand the 3D_Tiles folder, and right-click the 3d_tiles file.
2. From the drop-down menu, click Add to New > Local Scene.

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