Video Archives

MDA

Product Name

Ice Camera and Instant Scene Modeler (iSM)

Market Segment

Consumer hardware

Funding

Seeking venture partners

Competitors

Ice Camera - BF Goodrich Aerospace Instant Scene Modeler - Leica, Cyberware, Arius3D, Optech

Product Description

Flying or driving in icy conditions is a hazardous affair. MDA’s Ice Camera detects ice on virtually any surface including aircraft, roads and bridges. It uses a patented technology to recognize ice’s unique spectral signature. The camera can be placed on a pole or on a de-icing vehicle to provide instant ice assessments. The resultant data can be used to make aircraft de-icing and road salting decisions. Instant Scene Modeler is a unique 3D stereo camera and image processing system that creates calibrated photo-realistic 3D models of any environment. Users can image a scene by filming it as if one were videotaping a room. The software automatically determines how the camera is moving and combines successive pairs of images into one overall 3D model. The resultant 3D model can be exported to drawing and animation packages.

Market Opportunity

Ice Camera - The two primary markets are the air travel industry and road maintenance authorities. There are an estimated 3,000 de-icing vehicles in the United States, Canada and Europe. At a price of $40,000, this equates to a market potential of $120M not including spares, training, maintenance contracts and upgrades. There are some 30,000 bridges in the U.S. alone and more than 10,000 snowplows. At a price of $15,000, and a penetration of 5,000 installations, this equates to a market potential of $75M. There are additional applications of on-board aircraft and passenger cars.

Demo Says

“Even if you’re not a computer visualization junkie, you’ll easily appreciate the applications that MDA has made from its technology framework. While the two products they are showing here are quite different, both leverage deep understanding of image capture and processing, and both bring tremendous value to their respective markets. And let’s be real: any of us who fly commercial airlines in winter want MDA at every airline jetway.”