LAStools
The LAStools Software Suite is a collection of 52 highly efficient, batch-scriptable, multicore command-line tools for processing point clouds. The tools can also be run via a native GUI (laslook) and are available as toolboxes (QGIS, ArcGIS Pro, FME, Erdas). The software combines robust algorithms with efficient I/O, making LAStools the fastest & most memory-efficient solution for batch-scripted multicore LiDAR processing. It can turn billions of points into valuable products at blazing speed & with low memory requirements. The ability to script the modules makes the software ideal for use on web servers or in the cloud. LAStools has deep market-penetration and is widely used across industry, governments, research labs & educational institutions around the globe.
Overview of all LAStools
DATA CONVERSION (Import / Export)
Converts LIDAR from LAS/LAZ/ASCII to ESRI’s Shapefile format by grouping consecutive points into MultiPointZ records.
Converts from points from ESRI’s Shapefile to LAS/LAZ/ASCII format, given the input, contains Points or MultiPoints.
CLASSIFICATION & FILTERING
sonarnoiseblaster
Streaming cleaning of massive SONAR point clouds from multi-beam echo sounders.
free
DATA COMPRESSION
Compresses and uncompresses raster data from ASC, BIL, TIF, and IMG to the compressed RasterLAZ format.
free
DSM/DTM GENERATION & PRODUCTS
Comparing rasters in ASC, BIL, TIF, IMG and RasterLAZ format and reporting differences.
free
Finds sufficiently planar patches of LAS/LAZ points fulfilling several user-definable criteria output as simple polygons to SHP or RIEGL’s PEF format.
Rasters billions of LiDAR points via a streaming TIN to elevation, intensity, slope, or RGB grid.
OTHER UTILITIES
bytecopy
Utility to copy byte-level information between two LiDAR files.
free
bytediff
Utility to detect byte-level differences between two LiDAR files.
free
PREPROCESSING
This tool copies selected attributes from LiDAR points from a source to a target LAS/LAZ file using the GPS-time stamp and the return number as a reference.
Transforms LiDAR from one horizontal datum to another using an NTv2 grid or a seven-parameter Helmert transform.
Compares the LIDAR data of two LAS/LAZ/ASCII files and reports whether they are identical or different.
This tool classifies, flags, or removes LiDAR points based on their approximate xy distance from polygonal segments.
Reads LIDAR data in the LAS format and computes statistics that tell us whether the precision „advertised“ in the header is in the data.
PUBLISHING
Creates a LiDAR portal for 3D visualization (and optionally also for downloading) of LAS and LAZ files in any modern Web browser.
QUALITY CONTROL & INFORMATION
Probes the elevation of the LIDAR for a given x and y location and reports it to a text file or to stdout.
VISUALIZATION & COLORIZATION
Integrated workbench to visualize point clouds and run LAStools commands. Reference documentation of all LAStools modules.
free