Product Documentation

Autodesk Civil 3D - WMS Integration

These instructions apply to Autodesk® Civil 3D® 2013 and above and describe how to load georeferenced Nearmap imagery using Web Map Service (WMS).

Screen images shown in these instructions are from Autodesk Civil 3D 2016.

Please note that only certain versions of Autodesk ( Map 3D and Civil 3D) support this functionality.

Rather than import a single image of a small area, WMS allows Autodesk to request the imagery directly from the Nearmap server in a variety of map projections. For more information, check out the WMS 2.0 Integration documentation.

This guide covers the following topics:

Authentication

To consume Nearmap imagery via WMS, you must first create a Simple or Custom WMS Service, which generates a URL for you to copy to your computer's clipboard. Once you have done that, you can conveniently paste it into your application as required.

Setting up a Coordinate System

Before loading Nearmap WMS imagery, set up a coordinate system.

In the Civil 3D Workspace view, from the Toolspace menu, click the Settings tab.
Right-click on the drawing name and select Edit Drawing Settings.
If you want to take measurements from Nearmap imagery, select a distance-based coordinate system - for example, UTM zones or local grid systems. Refer to Natively Supported Coordinate Systems.
Click Apply, then OK.

Loading the Nearmap WMS Imagery

In the Planning and Analysis workspace view, click Connect.
In the Data Connections by Provider window, click Add WMS Connection.
In the Add a new connection panel, at Connection Name, enter Nearmap. At Server name or URL, paste the WMS URL that you copied from MyAccount to your computer's clipboard earlier.
Click Connect.
Do not enter anything in the User Name and Password fields. Click Login.
The Add Data to Map panel appears in the connection window. Expand the Nearmap node and configure a layer:
- Check a layer to select it.
- Change the Image Format to jpeg. This step improves performance by using compression at a usually imperceptible cost in image quality.
- Change the Server CS Code to your datum. For example, in the US select NAD83 UTM and your zone. If you select EPSG26910 and then you hover over it, you will see it's NAD83 / UTM zone 10.
  
  NOTE: If the projection in which you want to work in is not listed in the list of Server supported projections, it is best to rely on AutoCAD’s built in re-projection and leave the default setting for the Server CS Code to EPSG:4326.
Check Combine into one layer, and give the layer a name. Then click Add to Map.
The image layer loads and displays. As you zoom in, higher-resolution imagery loads on demand.

Configuring Measurements

If you would like to take measurements with Nearmap imagery, follow these additional steps:

In the command box at the bottom of the screen, type "UN" and press Enter. The Drawing Units box appears - use this window to set appropriate measurement units.
At the command box, enter "MEA" and select the MeasureGeom tool with an appropriate option. You can now take measurements using Nearmap imagery. The measurements will be shown on screen.