Case Studies

University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point - 2010 - Schmeeckle Reserve
TSchmeeckle Reserve is a 280-acre natural area on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP). Its mission is to preserve and manage native habitats of Central Wisconsin, serve as an outdoor laboratory for the university, and provide recreational opportunities for the community. The Reserve is a significant field station for the university. In the 2008-2009 academic year, over 2,400 students attended classes or conducted research in Schmeeckle for a total of 9,000 hours. UWSP faculty and staff teach hands-on classes in forestry, natural resources, soils, waters, wildlife, biology, geography, ecology, and history. Student organizations conduct research and activities in the Reserve, such as white-tailed deer, flying squirrel, and bat population studies, ecological restoration, prescribed burning, and timber harvesting.
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Bonanza Creek Long Term Ecological Research - 2009
Like many research programs, our LTER site is continually struggling to manage numerous remote sensor stations and their data . We are constantly looking to improve the quality and availability of the data they are collecting while using technician time and resources effectively. One option on the market to manage sensor network data is Vista Data Vision (VDV) and after some initial testing, we decided to take the plunge and have not yet been disappointed.
Poster for Bonanza Creek's new interactive climate data server, VDV.
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Research and Education - University of Illinois
During the 2007-2008 academic year grants were awarded to Dr. Praveen Kumar and Dr. Art Schmidt in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Illinois, to implement a new data collection system on the Urbana campus. The goal of this project is the deployment of sensors to provide high-resolution, semi-realtime datasets for research and education. The resulting data is published in semi-realtime over the campus wireless network and Ethernet, using Vista Data Vision at a departmental website (irbho.cee.uiuc.edu/vdv/VV_Frame.php). This VDV-powered website makes the data available to instructors and students in the classroom, allowing the visualization of campus weather events and their effects, and comparison with past weather events. The data is also used by graduate students to research green roofing technology and the impacts of climate on Midwestern hydrology and agriculture.
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ITAS - Norway
The Norwegian company ITAS (Instrumentation Services A/S), started as part of the Research Council of Norway in 1970, is located at the Agricultural University at Aas (south of Oslo). Since 1991, ITAS has been operating as an independent company specializing in field measurements as well as providing for communications, data retrieval and web service. ITAS has deep roots in the academic world but does also provide all kinds of environmental services to various businesses, communities and industries.
ITAS has been active in the fish farm industry and their clients have large fish farm installations in Norway, as well as in other countries around the world.
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National Energy Technology Laboratory - USA
The National Energy Technology Laboratory site in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA, maintains a 150-foot free standing meteorological tower with data collection points at ground level, 33 feet, 75 feet, and at 150 feet. The data collected at ground level is Air Temperature, relative humidity, total rainfall, and snow depth. The other stations monitor wind direction and speed. Additionally, air temperature is being monitored at the 33 foot level.
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Mount Washington Observatory - USA
The Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire, USA, is one of the oldest weather observatories in the world. Located in the White Mountains, it is a non-profit and educational institute whose purpose is to maintain a permanently staffed observatory atop Mount Washington and to use this unique station and other facilities to conduct programs of environmental observation and technical research, and to develop educational programs to advance public knowledge of the unique meteorology, natural sub-artic environment, and human history of the Mount Washington region.
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Portneuf River Basin - USA
The monitoring program for the Portneuf River Basin enables stakeholders to assess and document the influence of natural and human-caused factors on water quality. The program is a cooperative effort of private industry, educational institutions, scientists, and government agencies at numerous levels (City, County, State, Tribal, and Federal).
The following agencies cooperate in the Portneuf Basin Monitoring Program: Center for Ecological Research, Idaho State University- City of Pocatello- Idaho Department of Agriculture- Idaho Department of Environmental Quality- Idaho Department of Fish and Game- Portneuf Soil and Water Conservation District- Shoshone-Bannock Tribe- Three Rivers RC&D Council, Inc.- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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Projects

GKM Consultants - 2010 - Tsankov Kamak Dam, Bulgari
To facilitate management of the data generated by the system, Geokon, Inc./GKM Consultants will provide the sophisticated Vista Data Vision (VDV) data visualization software package.
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Papers

Environmental Modelling & Software - 2009 - Design of an image analysis bwbsite for phenological and meteorological monitoring
Web camera image databases and web-based services can be valuable components for a variety of modelling applications, but are still areas of relatively new exploration. Investigating design and infor- mation flow for an online image archive and analysis site for plant phenology and meteorological research has broader relevance to considerations of interoperability and website features. Currently, numerous online weather cameras provide images, but have no or limited-utility archives and do not support quantitative image analysis. We describe the design and implementation of a website (http:// zulu.geog.ucsb.edu/Data/camera.html) that both provides different display options for archived image review, as well as the ability to chart time-series values extracted for user-specified regions of interest. This interface is distinguished by content-enabled charts with the ability to click on data points and directly access the corresponding image for reference purposes. A linked website to the meteorological data from the camera station further extends the potential for exploratory analysis and pedagogical utility. Online quantification of the color change related to plant senescence and insolation impacts due to cloud cover are demonstrated.We conclude that dynamic web pages are a powerful and useful tool for adding educational and scientific value to repeat digital photography systems.
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Straitcrossing 2009 - Long Term Bridge Monitoring in Seattle USA
The City of Seattle is located on Puget Sound in the Northwest corner of the U.S. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is responsible for evaluating and maintaining 149 bridges in the City of Seattle. Thirty four of these structures are 70 years old or older with an average age of all bridges being 54 years old. Seattle is also located in an active seismic area; with the latest earthquake of magnitude 6.8 (Richter) was in February of 2001. Because of visible degradation induced by earthquakes along with agerelated and load rating considerations, SDOT has implemented a monitoring program on several of their bridges. The goals of the program are [read more]
Long Term Bridge Monitoring in Seattle USA - Straitcrossing2009.pdf

FMGM - Field Measurements in Geomechanics
The 7th International Symposium on Field Measuerments in Geomechanics was held in Boston MA USA during September 24-27, 2007. The great international interest and large attendance at this symposium have again clearly demonstrated the need for specialty conferences of this kind to build on the benefits from the previous six FMGM symposia held in Switzerland (1983), Japan (1987), Norway (1991), Italy (1995), Singapore (1999) and Norway (2003).  The great interest in the FMGM 2007 symposium is reflected by the large number of abstracts received (155). After independent reviews by two reviewers, 105 papers were accepted for presentation and publication in the proceedings. These papers were written by 174 authors and co-authors from 19 countries.  One of the papers was written by Andres Thorarinsson, CEO of Vista Data Vision:  METHODS FOR AUTOMATIC STORAGE, VISUALIZATION AND REPORTING IN DATALOGGING APPLICATIONS.