Feedback on the New Datums

1. Feedback on the New Datums Trimble Graham Briggs 2017 Geospatial Summit April 24 to 25, 2017

2. Preparation Our major products/services which will be affected by the new datums: • The Trimble Geodetic Library, which is used by Trimble’s: field, office, and cloud-based positioning solutions Our preparations to date include: • Released time-dependent transformation handling in some core products • Preparing to update the fixed-epoch transformation parameters • Working on the inclusion of time meta-data with position information • Investigating the implementation of local models (US HTDP, NZ grid deformation, ...) • Active participation at related: conventions, seminars, … • Educating our users and exposing them, through our beta programs, to time dependent transformations

3. Advantages / Challenges We are excited because... • More accurate measurements, with their predicted errors (confidence level) • Better tools, including web interfaces and APIs, allowing our users to obtain consistent results, through direct use of the NGS algorithms in Trimble solutions We are concerned because... • Our customers believe that it is important for the CORS and RTN to continue to work with a fixed-epoch. This seems still to be in question. • Customers will need easy to use tools to transform datums, if they change in the middle of their projects, or if they need to work with old data sets. • Most customers don’t understand this complex problem. We need to provide simple workflows for them to follow in our products. • We need to upgrade our libraries and software applications quickly any time there is a change.

4. Transition Tools / Outreach Needs The tools, products, or services we need most (from NGS or others) are: • A global standard for representing and working with deformation models • A common lexicon, to be shared by: NGS, solution providers, universities, agencies, and others • Guidelines and documented tools to work with data sets that have been collected across multiple datum epochs • Well documented “best practices”, to guide our users in re-processing their observations in the current epoch, to bring their control "up-to-date" The outreach we need most (from NGS or others): • Prescribed methods for working with the NSRS in commercially available software packages • Tools and algorithms written in C/C++, for cross platform portability, rather than in Fortran • Expanded use of data files, rather than software libraries, to facilitate the updating of our solutions with fewer code changes • NGS/Industry collaboration to bring this solution to our shared constituents and customers • Greater focus on GIS and other professionals with more limited geodetic knowledge who work with geospatial data