Section 1

Map Fusion Hard Limits

These constraints are not configurable. Plan within them before arriving on site.

Constraint

Limit

Maximum segments per fusion job

10 segments

Projects exceeding 10 segments must be split into multiple fusion jobs. Export each job as LAZ or LAS, then combine and register the outputs in CloudCompare or Autodesk ReCap Pro. See Section 2.

Maximum total scan duration (all segments combined)

200 minutes

Recommended maximum duration per segment

20 minutes

Target 12 to 15 minutes for efficient processing with margin. Going over 20 minutes does not ruin the scan or require a restart, but processing time and RAM requirements increase substantially. Longer segments are a processing burden, not a data failure.

Device consistency across segments

Same model required. L2 Pro and K1 cannot be mixed in one fusion job. PortalCam cannot be fused with K1 or L2 Pro segments.

Minimum overlap between adjacent segments

50 ft (15 m)

Plan 65 to 100 ft (20 to 30 m) as your working target. The 50 ft figure is the minimum for the algorithm to function. Planning to that minimum leaves no margin for field variation.

Connection point position tolerance

Within 4 in (10 cm) of the Segment 1 take

Connection point orientation tolerance

Within 10 degrees of the Segment 1 take

RAM Limits by Software

LixelStudio and LCC Studio have different RAM requirements. The limits below reflect how much scan data each application can hold in memory before processing failure becomes likely. Confirm which software you are processing in before starting a long job.

Software

32 GB RAM

64 GB RAM

128 GB RAM

LixelStudio

~15 min

Minimum configuration. Not comfortable for most projects.

~30 min

Recommended for standard single scans and small fusion jobs.

~60 min

Required for large fusion jobs. Use 128 GB for projects above 150 min total.

LCC Studio

Not supported

64 GB is the minimum for LCC Studio. Running on 32 GB will fail.

~30 min

Minimum for LCC Studio. Standard quality only at this level.

~60 min at standard; 150 min with 128 GB

96 to 128 GB required for total scan durations at or above 150 minutes.

Section 2

Segment Planning Checklist

Before Leaving the Office

Map the full site and divide into segments of 12 to 15 minutes each. The recommended maximum is 20 minutes per segment. Going over does not ruin the scan, but it increases processing time and RAM consumption significantly. Shorter segments process faster, consume less RAM, and give you more control over the result.
Verify the total does not exceed 10 segments and 200 minutes. A project exceeding either limit requires splitting into multiple fusion jobs. Each job is processed separately in LixelStudio or LCC Studio, then the exported point clouds are combined in CloudCompare or Autodesk ReCap Pro. Plan split points along natural site divisions such as wings, floors, or zones with rich geometry for manual registration.
Confirm all segments use the same device model. L2 Pro and K1 cannot be fused together. PortalCam is a separate pipeline.
Select overlap zones with rich, stable features: furnished rooms, corridor intersections, equipment clusters. Avoid blank corridors, empty rooms, and featureless walls. The algorithm needs geometry to match.
Plan overlap zones of 65 to 100 ft (20 to 30 m), not exactly 50 ft (15 m). The 50 ft minimum leaves no room for field adjustment.
Identify connection point locations in each overlap zone before the scan. Know exactly where you will stand for the shared marks in both segments.
Plan a fallback for RTK segments. On RTK-planned projects, identify physical control point locations at each segment break in case RTK fails to achieve Fixed status.
Photograph each planned connection point location before scanning. A timestamped photo showing the marker and surrounding scene is your reference if position or orientation consistency is questioned later.

For projects exceeding 10 segments or 200 minutes total, split into multiple fusion jobs. Process each zone separately, then export each as LAZ or LAS. Load all exports into CloudCompare or ReCap Pro and register them using shared geometry or control points visible in adjacent zones. Use LAZ for archive and clip E57 exports to required delivery areas before sending to other teams. This approach has no inherent scale limit.

Section 3

Field Collection Procedure

Per-Segment Execution

Each segment is a fully independent scan session. Initialize, scan, and end each segment completely before starting the next. Do not attempt to bridge segments mid-scan.
Cover the unique area of the segment fully before entering the overlap zone. Scan the overlap zone at the end of the segment, not the beginning.
Mark connection points in the overlap zone before ending the segment. These points must be physically revisited and marked in the next segment as well.
Review the LixelGO preview before starting the next segment. Check coverage in the unique area and in the overlap zone. A gap found now can be rescanned immediately. A gap found during processing requires returning to site.

Connection Point Marking

Place physical XGRIDS sticker targets at each connection point location before scanning begins.
In Segment 1, approach the marker, mark it in LixelGO, and note your exact position and body orientation when marking. Take a timestamped photograph of your position and the surrounding scene.
In Segment 2, return to the same marker and match your position within 4 in (10 cm) and orientation within 10 degrees of the Segment 1 take. Exceeding either threshold produces geometric errors at the join that the algorithm cannot fully correct.
Use the same point name in both segments, exactly, including case. A name mismatch causes the connection point to be silently discarded in processing.

Section 4

Processing Reference

Processing Time Estimates

LixelStudio and LCC Studio process approximately 20 minutes of compute time per 1 minute of scan data at Medium Quality on recommended hardware. That ratio drives all scheduling estimates: a 20-minute scan produces roughly 7 hours of processing. The table below shows the math at common project sizes.

Total Scan Duration

Calculation

Estimated Process Time

Schedule Implication

Notes

20 min (1 segment)

20 x 20 min

~7 hours

Start in the evening, review in the morning

Medium Quality, recommended hardware, NVMe SSD

60 min (3 segments)

60 x 20 min

~20 hours

Full overnight run

Confirm RAM meets threshold for total scan duration before starting

100 min (5 segments)

100 x 20 min

~33 hours

Minimum 2 calendar days

Add 20 to 25% for SATA SSD. 96 GB RAM or more recommended.

200 min (10 segments)

200 x 20 min

~65 hours

Allow 3 full calendar days. Add QA and export time on top.

128 GB RAM required. NVMe SSD required. Do not interrupt mid-run.

Do not interrupt processing between phases. LixelStudio writes intermediate data continuously during fusion. An interruption, even between phases, can corrupt the project file and require restarting from import. Close all non-essential applications. Set Windows power settings to never sleep before starting.

Hardware Impact on Processing Speed

Hardware Factor

Impact

NVMe SSD vs SATA SSD

SATA increases processing time by 15 to 25%. A 65-hour NVMe job becomes 75 to 80 hours on SATA.

96 GB RAM or less, project above 150 minutes

Use Medium Quality to reduce memory load. High Quality on insufficient RAM will fail mid-run.

GPU: NVIDIA required

AMD GPUs are not supported. Processing will fail on AMD hardware. NVIDIA CUDA is mandatory for both LixelStudio and LCC Studio.

Section 5

Data Management at Scale

Storage Planning

A 200-minute L2 Pro project produces 200 to 270 GB of raw data. Plan storage before the project begins, not after.
Processed output adds 50 to 100 GB depending on density settings and export format.
For point cloud review software, 32 to 64 GB of RAM is recommended for projects above 90 GB of total point cloud data.
Use LAZ for archive. LAZ compresses LAS by 80 to 90% with no quality loss. A 100 GB LAS file becomes approximately 10 to 20 GB in LAZ. Deliver E57 clipped to required areas for BIM coordination workflows.

Export Rules

E57 filenames must be 20 characters or shorter. LixelStudio's E57 export fails silently on longer filenames. The export appears to complete but the file is corrupt or missing. Apply this limit before exporting.
Clip deliverables before sending. Delivering a 200 GB full-facility scan to a contractor who needs only the mechanical room serves no one. Clip to the required area in CloudCompare or ReCap Pro first.
For files above 5 GB, avoid email and standard cloud services with upload limits. Use a large-file transfer service or a shared drive with adequate capacity.

Section 6

Fusion Troubleshooting Quick Reference

Problem

Most Likely Cause

Field Fix or Prevention

Registration failure at segment boundary

Insufficient overlap geometry, or connection point position or orientation exceeded 4 in (10 cm) or 10-degree tolerance

Rescan the overlap zone of the affected segment with richer feature coverage. Verify connection point tolerance before leaving site.

Visible misalignment or ghost geometry at joins

Connection point tolerance exceeded, or overlap zone placed in a featureless area

No in-software fix. Rescan the affected segment with correct connection point positioning.

Control point silently discarded

Name mismatch between CSV file and LixelGO entry (case-sensitive)

Write point names before going to site. Type from the written list into both the CSV and LixelGO. Do not create names in the field.

Processing failure mid-run

Insufficient RAM for project size, or run interrupted

Reduce Quality setting to Medium. Verify RAM meets the software-specific threshold. Ensure the machine can run uninterrupted for the full estimated duration.

Segment cannot connect to neighbors

No shared RTK or matching control points between that segment and adjacent ones

Every segment must be linkable to at least one adjacent segment. An isolated segment with no connection method must be rescanned.

Data that was not scanned cannot be recovered in processing. No LixelStudio setting creates overlap coverage that was not physically captured. No algorithm matches control point names that were not entered correctly. Verify in the field, not at the office.

Section 7

Critical Warnings

No recovery Insufficient overlap cannot be fixed in processing. If two adjacent segments do not share 50 ft (15 m) of common geometry with matching features, they cannot be fused. The segment with the coverage gap must be rescanned.
No recovery An isolated segment with no connection to its neighbors cannot be fused. Every segment must link to at least one adjacent segment through RTK or matching control points. An isolated segment requires rescanning the overlap zone.
Bad data Map Fusion cannot fix drift that exists inside a segment. Fusion aligns segments to each other. It cannot correct poor loop technique within a segment. Each individual scan must be executed with proper technique before fusion is attempted.
Warning Connection point tolerance is 4 in (10 cm) and 10 degrees — not an approximation. Exceeding either threshold in either segment produces spatial errors at the join that the algorithm cannot fully correct. Know exactly where you stood in Segment 1 before marking the same point in Segment 2.
Warning Do not mix device models in a single fusion job. L2 Pro and K1 segments cannot be fused together. PortalCam is a separate pipeline and cannot be mixed with either. If the project requires multiple device types, treat them as separate fusion jobs and register manually afterward.
Warning E57 filenames longer than 20 characters cause silent export failure. LixelStudio will appear to complete the export but the file will be corrupt. Rename projects before exporting to E57.
Warning Interrupting a fusion processing run can corrupt the project file. A 200-minute project at Medium Quality requires approximately 65 hours of continuous compute time. Set a machine that can run uninterrupted for the full duration.
Warning LixelStudio and LCC Studio have different RAM minimums. LixelStudio can run with 32 GB for short scans. LCC Studio requires a minimum of 64 GB and will fail on 32 GB. Verify which software you are running before starting any long processing job.

Module 5 Quick Field Guide