Georeferencing tiff by creating tfw file

Gambin Dejan Dejan.Gambin at PULA.HR
Wed Nov 16 23:39:09 PST 2005


Thanks Ed, thanks Jacob,

That is the thing I have missed - the scale reported is in
"meters/pixel" and this gives the correct result....but correct me
please - isn't the scale "unitsless" parameter? 1inch on map=25inch in
world, 1m on map=25m in world? I was looking in gdalinfo output and the
TIFFTAG_RESOLUTIONUNIT that is set to pixel/inch, so I did 25/300
thinking it is the pixel size in inches that needs to be converted to
meters...obviously wrong

regards, dejan

> -----Original Message-----
> From: UMN MapServer Users List 
> [mailto:MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU] On Behalf Of Ed McNierney
> Sent: Thursday, November 17, 2005 12:43 AM
> To: MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> Subject: Re: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Georeferencing tiff by 
> creating tfw file
> 
> 
> Dejan -
> 
> "..if the map is in 1:25 scale, that means that 1 inch on the 
> map is 25 inches in the real world....if the map was scanned 
> on 300dpi then the pixel size is 25/300 in inches, then 
> converted to meters"
> 
> Yes, that's all there is to it.  There's nothing more to 
> understand.  If the scale you're reporting in CAD Overlay is 
> in units of "meters per pixel", then one pixel is 
> 0.08467878514170 meters.  If that image were scanned at 600 
> DPI, then each inch on the printed map source would produce 
> 600 pixels or 50.80 meters.  50.80 meters is 2,000 feet, so 
> that would correspond to a scale of 1" = 2,000' or 1:24,000 
> scale.  Or it could be a 1:12,000 scale map scanned at 300 
> DPI - or a 1:48,000 scale map scanned at 1,200 DPI.  They 
> would all come out the same - the image resolution in units 
> per pixel is a product of the source scale and the scanning 
> resolution, and you can't distinguish the two.
> 
> 	- Ed
> 
> Ed McNierney
> President and Chief Mapmaker
> TopoZone.com / Maps a la carte, Inc.
> 73 Princeton Street, Suite 305
> North Chelmsford, MA  01863
> Phone: +1 (978) 251-4242
> Fax: +1 (978) 251-1396
> ed at topozone.com
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dejan Gambin [mailto:dejan.gambin at pula.hr] 
> Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 6:07 PM
> To: Ed McNierney
> Cc: MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> Subject: RE: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Georeferencing tiff by 
> creating tfw file
> 
> Sorry I forgot to set the CC..
> 
> I have received this tif file from a colleague who wanted to 
> "georeference" it and place it on the existing mapserver map. 
> He just sent me the upper left coordinates (real world 
> coordinates in meters) and this scale. Suppose he scanned the 
> paper map that is in 1:25 scale and gave me the coordinates 
> of the upper left corner. So I thought:
> 
> ..if the map is in 1:25 scale, that means that 1 inch on the 
> map is 25 inches in the real world....if the map was scanned 
> on 300dpi then the pixel size is 25/300 in inches, then 
> converted to meters. But it is not and obviously I am pretty 
> newbie in this geo-math and I am missing some important things. 
> 
> Anyway, after a while he sent me a tfw file saying he has 
> built it with CAD Overlay...that is all I know and this tiff 
> is now positioned well on the map...
> 
> ...Sorry, I am just curious in how this is 
> theoretically/mathematically calculated so I asked....
> 
> This is also interesting to me because we have some 
> non-referenced tiff maps with some known world coordinates on 
> them and I would like to georeference them in the future, if 
> this is possible...
> 
> regards, dejan
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Ed McNierney [mailto:ed at topozone.com]
> > Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 10:54 PM
> > To: Dejan Gambin; MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> > Subject: RE: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Georeferencing tiff by 
> creating tfw
> 
> > file
> > 
> > 
> > Dejan -
> > 
> > Well, that's not the GeoTIFF output you posted the first time <g>!
> > 
> > What is the "scale" you have (the value that's 25.40363554)?
> > What is the definition of that value, and its units (if any)? 
> >  And what are the definition and the units of the "CAD Overlay" 
> > output, too?  It's hard to work with dimensionless, 
> undefined numbers 
> > - where did they come from? We need some more details to be able to 
> > help.  Thanks!
> > 
> > 	- Ed
> > 
> > P.S.  Please always reply to the whole list, not just to the first
> > responder.
> > 
> > Ed McNierney
> > President and Chief Mapmaker
> > TopoZone.com / Maps a la carte, Inc.
> > 73 Princeton Street, Suite 305
> > North Chelmsford, MA  01863
> > ed at topozone.com
> > (978) 251-4242   
> > 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Dejan Gambin [mailto:dejan.gambin at pula.hr]
> > Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 4:31 PM
> > To: Ed McNierney
> > Subject: RE: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Georeferencing tiff by 
> creating tfw
> 
> > file
> > 
> > Ed,
> > 
> > Sorry, I have run gdalinfo on the tiff with already 
> existing tfw file
> > that I have calculated and that is WRONG...
> > 
> > Running gdalinfo on this tif (that has no associated tfw) 
> results in:
> > 
> > Driver: GTiff/GeoTIFF
> > Size is 8857, 5905
> > Coordinate System is `'
> > Metadata:
> >   TIFFTAG_XRESOLUTION=300
> >   TIFFTAG_YRESOLUTION=300
> >   TIFFTAG_RESOLUTIONUNIT=2 (pixels/inch) Corner Coordinates:
> > Upper Left  (    0.0,    0.0)
> > Lower Left  (    0.0, 5905.0)
> > Upper Right ( 8857.0,    0.0)
> > Lower Right ( 8857.0, 5905.0)
> > Center      ( 4428.5, 2952.5)
> > Band 1 Block=8857x5905 Type=Byte, ColorInterp=Palette
> >   Color Table (RGB with 2 entries)
> >     0: 255,255,255,255
> >     1: 0,0,0,255
> > 
> > So, I have this output, I have xy coordinates (in meters):
> > 5455750 and 5021000 and I have the scale of 25.40363554. 
> The question 
> > remains - how do I calculate the "pixel size" (first and fourth 
> > parameter) of tfw file that I need to create.
> > 
> > Using CAD Overlay I get the value of 0.08467878514170 that 
> is correct
> > but I need to know how to get this value by formula, not with util 
> > like CAD Overlay
> > 
> > Sorra again
> > 
> > regards, dejan
> > 
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: UMN MapServer Users List
> > [mailto:MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU]
> > > On Behalf Of Ed McNierney
> > > Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 4:51 PM
> > > To: MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> > > Subject: Re: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Georeferencing tiff by
> > creating tfw
> > 
> > > file
> > > 
> > > 
> > > Dejan -
> > > 
> > > The gdalinfo utility is telling you the pixel size.  The 
> fourth line
> 
> > > of the output below, beginning with "Origin = ", ends with
> > "Pixel Size
> > 
> > > = ". Those are the very same values you would use in the first and
> > > fourth lines, respectively, of a TFW file.  It looks like
> > this is the
> > > same value you calculated, and it appears to be correct.
> > > 
> > > 	- Ed
> > > 
> > > Ed McNierney
> > > President and Chief Mapmaker
> > > TopoZone.com / Maps a la carte, Inc.
> > > 73 Princeton Street, Suite 305
> > > North Chelmsford, MA  01863
> > > ed at topozone.com
> > > (978) 251-4242
> > > 
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: UMN MapServer Users List
> > [mailto:MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU]
> > > On Behalf Of Gambin Dejan
> > > Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 8:59 AM
> > > To: MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> > > Subject: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Georeferencing tiff by creating tfw
> > > file
> > > 
> > > Hi,
> > > 
> > > Even there are probably some utils I can use, I would 
> still like to
> > > know how can I calculate the "pixel size" parameter in 
> tfw file (so 
> > > the first and fourth parameter) from the existing tiff 
> file and the 
> > > following
> > > informations:
> > > 
> > > For example, "gdalinfo my.tif" says
> > > 
> > > Driver: GTiff/GeoTIFF
> > > Size is 8857, 5905
> > > Coordinate System is `'
> > > Origin = (5455749.998925,5021000.001075) Pixel Size =
> > > (0.00215084,-0.00215084)
> > > Metadata:
> > >   TIFFTAG_XRESOLUTION=300
> > >   TIFFTAG_YRESOLUTION=300
> > >   TIFFTAG_RESOLUTIONUNIT=2 (pixels/inch) Corner 
> Coordinates: Upper 
> > > Left  ( 5455749.999, 5021000.001) Lower Left  ( 5455749.999,
> > > 5020987.300) Upper Right ( 5455769.049,
> > > 5021000.001) Lower Right ( 5455769.049, 5020987.300)
> > > Center      ( 5455759.524, 5020993.651)
> > > Band 1 Block=8857x5905 Type=Byte, ColorInterp=Palette
> > >   Color Table (RGB with 2 entries)
> > >     0: 255,255,255,255
> > >     1: 0,0,0,255
> > > 
> > > I have xy coordinates (in meters): 5455750 and 5021000 
> and the scale
> 
> > > of 25.40363554. I have tried using the simple formula like:
> > > 
> > > pixel size in inches = scale/resolution, so 25.40363554/300 and
> > > converting it to meters gives me 0.002150841. But this is
> > not correct,
> > 
> > > right?
> > > 
> > > Wiht CAD overlay I have got 0.08467878514170, that is probably
> > > right...
> > > 
> > > What am I doing wrong? Is it the resolution that I am using? Do I 
> > > have to use screen resolution or what?
> > > 
> > > thanks
> > > 
> > > regards, dejan
> > > 
> > 
> > 
> 



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