When the job crosses models.
8DB offers sampled geometry alongside other native representations. Evaluate it when the scan must connect to asset records, prior observations and evidence, as well as remain queryable.
Explore the connected workflow ↗Explore the models / 8DB
Point clouds
Find structure in a field of points.
Work with sampled geometry and supported attributes, then connect spatial neighborhoods to the broader observation.
Sample · search · inspect
Model / Point cloudsConceptual diagram
The decision / Specialist context
Make a scan useful beyond the viewer.
A neighborhood of points can be the start of an inspection, a change record or a question about the asset it describes.
Bentley iTwin
Reality-modeling pipelines that produce and manage captured geometry.
Read the source ↗Cesium ion
Tiling and streaming large geospatial assets for interactive delivery.
Read the source ↗WHAT THE WORK REQUIRES
USGS lidar specifications put delivery quality, attributes and data requirements in concrete terms. Preserving those details is as important as points loaded per second.
Start with the operations
your question needs.
- XYZ nearest-neighbour queries
- Region queries and confidence-aware filtering
- Rejection of nonfinite coordinates on recorded execution paths
Documented product scope, reviewed 17 September 2026. The underlying build and deployment must be qualified for your application.
Attribute coverage and retention depend on the representation. A downsampled view need not retain every source attribute. Registration, segmentation and defect classification are separate operations to qualify.
Connected native models
Keep the next question within reach.
A point set is more useful when the application can follow it back to the observation and forward to the asset’s inspection history. 8DB’s native shapes and relationships provide building blocks for that workflow.
Keep the surface, and what it describes.
Connect · surface · inspect
Explore model ↗Follow the relationship to a better answer.
Connect · traverse · follow
Explore model ↗Keep the source behind the answer.
Structure · search · trace
Explore model ↗These connections show the models involved in the application design. Compare the supported combination and full workflow with a realistic alternative.
Input → usable value / interactive design example
Inspect the measured surface around a component
Receive an XYZ scan with capture metadata
A point sample outlines a surface. Highlighted neighbors identify a local region of interest.
Next: Validate coordinates
Conceptual application workflow. Qualify the supported operations, external tools, protection and persistence for the complete path. These diagrams are explanatory, not measured results.
Read the complete workflow and comparison scope
- Receive an XYZ scan with capture metadata
- Validate coordinates and retain the source link
- Select a component region and nearby points
- Relate the selected points to geometry and earlier inspections
- Present the measured evidence for an inspection decision
Count decoding, registration if required, storage/indexing and evidence assembly. A neighbourhood-query benchmark alone is not a defect-detection result.
Compare a realistic alternative.
Spatial stacks are realistic alternatives. Use their supported dimensionality and functions as the baseline; include any separate scan-processing library actually required by the job.
PostGIS referenceCompare equivalent outputs and required guarantees, including the simplest single-product alternative where one exists. A specialist may remain the better fit when its operators, ecosystem or operational maturity are decisive. Combining native models becomes valuable when your actual question crosses them.
Modality performance / Evidence reviewed 18 September 2026
Define the useful result. Measure the complete job.
The comparison to make: Select an inspection region and connect its points to an asset and earlier scan.
A reviewed timing for this specific job is not yet published here. The evaluation below defines the useful result and the measures that matter. Supporting measurements must match this model, its quality target and the required operating conditions.
01Point density & answer quality
02Neighborhood query latency
03Load & index memory
Include memory, storage, energy and hardware writes
Record build-time and serving memory separately, original and derived stored bytes, measured joules per completed job, and physical writes including indexing, compaction and recovery. A smaller representation does not by itself prove lower energy or longer device life.
Match correctness, freshness, durability and protection across alternatives. Encryption, authorization, adapters, network setup and output delivery belong in the complete-job comparison wherever required. No universal zero-overhead claim follows from these results.
Evaluate the result you need
Select an inspection region and connect its points to an asset and earlier scan.
Illustrative evaluation workflow · qualify the required operations and deployment
- 01Captured points
- 02Spatial neighborhood
- 03Asset and history
- 04Inspection evidence
Round-trip fidelity
Retain coordinates, classification and required attributes.
Neighborhood quality
Fix radius, density and exact/approximate semantics.
Resource budget
Measure bytes per point, peak RAM and index-ready time.
Bring the workload that matters to you.
Discuss an evaluation ↗We’ll use its output, quality and operating requirements to define a useful comparison.
Comparison scope, sources and next evidence
Qualify LAS/LAZ or other actual import paths, retained attributes and precision; compare tuned PDAL/point-cloud pipelines plus persistent indexing at equivalent fidelity.
Match the required correctness, freshness, durability and protection. Include ingestion, transformation, indexing and delivery in a complete-job result. Measure memory, stored bytes, energy and physical writes separately. Vendor descriptions establish offers, not independent rankings or 8DB compatibility.
- Bentley iTwin reality modeling Vendor documentation
- Cesium ion Vendor offer
- USGS Lidar Base Specification Public-sector acceptance specification
- PDAL Open-source tool documentation
Market review: 20 September 2026 · Reference revision 3.0. Linked benchmark results retain their own dates and scope. Standards are evaluation context, not an 8DB certification.
Choose the path that fits your deployment.
Verify the supported API/SDK, data format, persistence and indexing behaviour for the release you plan to use. Match the operation-by-modality protection profile and device qualification to the workload.
Related articles
Take the next step into the thinking.
8DB | Native Multimodal Data: Connect the Dots Across Graphs, Maps and Time Series
Explore the ideas and implementation context behind this capability.
Show Your Work: Provenance as a Query, Not a Forensic Reconstruction
Explore the ideas and implementation context behind this capability.
Reference / Reviewed 17 September 2026
Readable, shareable and traceable.
This reference explains 8DB’s public modality description with an explicit workload and selection criteria. It is a documentary review, not fresh execution of every operator or platform.
Public sources: 8DB modality scope; PostGIS reference; the related articles above. Internal source leads and outstanding release checks remain in the editorial record.
Download this referenceEvaluate the question
your application needs to answer.
Bring the data shapes, input state, expected output and the systems you use today. Define a comparison around that complete job.
Discuss your workload