GPR-SLICE

GPR-SLICE has every feature you can possibly think of.

However, if you do need a new feature, the developer will implement it if there is enough demand from other users.

• Compatibility with just about every GPR system ever made. If you have some really obscure system that isn’t listed below, we’re keen to see it and make the software compatible with your system.
  • Sensors and Software, GSSI, Utsi Electronics, Mala Geoscience, 3D Radar, US Radar, IDS Corporation, Terravision, Geoscanners AB, Zond, Loza, Koden Radar, and RadarTeam systems are supported.
  • India’s NIRM data format, and other industry standard data formats including ASCII and SEGY are also supported.
  • This includes cart-based systems, hand-towed and vehicle-towed systems, wall and concrete GPR units, multi-frequency systems, multi-channel systems, and dual-polarisation antennas.
• Compatibility with GPS and total station navigation data (including RTK GNSS receiver data), and the ability to filter low-quality data (e.g. for GPS fallout).
• Georeferencing data based on GPS or total station data collected alongside GPR data, or by providing the coordinates of survey grid corners or the ends of each survey line.
• Full gridded-survey and non-gridded survey support. Depth slices can still be created even if you don’t use a regular survey line spacing (as long as you have navigation data for each line).
• An extensive selection of data-processing and signal filtering routines.
• 2D and 3D visualisation of GPR data.
• Topographic correction, antenna tilt, and roll, pitch, and yaw correction.
• Support for the display of non-GPR datasets that are provided in an XYZ file format. Specific support is provided for resistivity and magnetometry data, but any XYZ data can be imported and visualised with the system.
• Draw interpretations directly onto GPR data and export the interpretations into a CAD file for use in site mapping.
• Automated processing routines can be set by the user for batch processing of datasets.
• Export processed GPR data for display alongside laser scanning/point cloud data in third-party software packages.

The following system requirements are the critical to the correct operation of GPR-SLICE software:

• The latest desktop version of Microsoft Windows (desktop version, not Windows Mobile). If you try to run GPR-SLICE on earlier versions of Windows, you will likely encounter issues. It is critical that you are running the latest version of Microsoft Windows. Support is only available to users running the current version of Microsoft Windows.
• The latest version of Microsoft’s .NET Framework.
• A dedicated Nvidia graphics card is strongly recommended, but not vital. The more memory on the graphics card, the better. Please note that other graphics card manufacturers do not provide OpenGL support as well as Nvidia; GPR-SLICE relies on OpenGL, so we strongly recommend you have an Nvidia graphics card.
• A minimum of 2GB of RAM for use by GPR-SLICE, plus sufficient RAM to run the Microsoft Windows operating system and any other background applications.
• GPR-SLICE is a multi-threaded application. The more threads your computer’s CPU has, the faster GPR-SLICE will be able to process your data (multithreading is a computing technique that allows software to perform calculations for several different tasks simultaneously. In GPR_SLICE, multi-threaded processing allows us to apply data filters on multiple files simultaneously, resulting in a drastic improvement in data processing time.)
• You will also need Zoom installed and a fairly fast internet connection for one-on-one software training if you need it (although training videos are also available via our website).
• GPR-SLICE will operate on a desktop version of Windows (i.e. not on Windows Mobile), as long as there is sufficient memory for the GPR data that is being processed within GPR-SLICE. For example, if you have collected GPR data over an area of 20 x 20m, then the memory requirements will be much less than if you had collected GPR data over a 100 x 100m area. Essentially, the more RAM and graphics memory the computer has, the faster it will process and render data in the OpenGL environment.
• GPR-SLICE uses OpenGL for rendering three-dimensional datasets. Nvidia graphics cards seem to have the best support for OpenGL, so we recommend users have a dedicated Nvidia graphics card. This isn’t a vital requirement, but it is strongly recommended. In our experience, GPR-SLICE is more stable when run on a computer with an Nvidia card.
• It is possible to run GPR-SLICE on Apple’s OS X using virtualization software such as Parallels or VMWare. However, we do not provide support when running GPR-SLICE via virtualization software. GPR-SLICE is only supported on native installations of the latest desktop version of the Microsoft Windows operating system.
• Please also note that GPR-SLICE’s 3D graphics environment is not well-supported by third-party remote desktop utilities (such as TeamViewer); to ensure system stability and optimal graphics, you will need to run GPR-SLICE on your computer directly, not on a remote computer or server.
• If you use anti-virus software, you may have troubles opening or updating GPR-SLICE. We have observed problems with AVG Anti-Virus, Kaspersky Anti-Virus, and BitDefender. You will need to add the C:slicev7.0gprslicev7.exe file and/or the entire directory at C:slice into your anti-virus software’s white-list to override the anti-virus software. 
• GPR-SLICE must be opened with an active internet connection at least once per month for software license validation.

We aim to support ALL ground-penetrating radar systems. If you have a system that isn’t in the below list, please contact us and we will try to get support written into the software for you.

Supported GPR manufacturers include:

• • Sensors and Software,
  • GSSI,
  • Utsi Electronics,
  • Mala Geoscience,
  • 3D Radar,
  • US Radar,
  • IDS Corporation,
  • Leica Geosystems,
  • Terravision,
  • Geoscanners AB,
  • Zond,
  • Loza,
  • Koden Radar, and
  • RadarTeam.

Support is provided for ASCII, SEGY, and the NIRM data formats.

The software supports cart-based systems, hand-towed and vehicle-towed systems, wall and concrete GPR units, multi-frequency systems, multi-channel systems, and dual-polarisation antennas. Compatibility with GPS and total station navigation data (including RTK GNSS receiver data), and the ability to filter low-quality data (e.g. for GPS fallout when working near trees or buildings) is also included.

Given the vast array of features and options available, the software is complex.

We have produced training videos to get you up to speed as quickly as possible. These are available here.

There is also an extensive PDF user manual (and a separate one for multi-channel users), and a growing series of training videos and guides. These are available for free.

This video goes for 2.5hrs and should be the first thing ANY new GPR-SLICE user watches. It introduces almost everything you need to know in order to get started with GPR-SLICE.

This video assumes you are using either GPS or robotic total station navigation for your GPR data. If you aren’t using these methods, please consult the user manual (available via your user Dropbox folder; the first few minutes of the below video shows where to find the user manual), or contact us for face-to-face training via Skype (which is included in the price of your GPR-SLICE licence).

After watching this video, we strongly recommend you check out the following tutorial videos:

1. Radargram display and interpretation in GPR-SLICE.
2. Project management in GPR-SLICE. This will explain how to switch between projects in GPR-SLICE.
3. Horizon detection and mapping in GPR-SLICE (this is useful for those doing GPR surveys to map any soil, rock, or road/concrete layers).
4. Hyperbola detection in GPR-SLICE (this requires the BridgeDeck module for GPR-SLICE and allows semi-automatic detection of hyperbolic reflectors in radargrams, which is useful for those doing ground-penetrating radar surveys on concrete slabs in order to map re-enforcing bars (“reo”)).

A full list of all GPR-SLICE training videos is available here.

[fvplayer src=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/gprslice/Introduction+to+GPR-SLICE.mov” width=”1920″ height=”1080″]

This tutorial explains how to display and interpret radargrams in GPR-SLICE.

[fvplayer src=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/gprslice/Radargram+display+and+interpretation+in+GPR-SLICE.mp4″ width=”1920″ height=”1080″]

This tutorial explains how to open, close, and archive projects in GPR-SLICE.

[fvplayer src=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/gprslice/Project+Management+in+GPR-SLICE.mov” width=”1920″ height=”1080″]

This tutorial explains how to detect buried horizons and map the depth to sub-surface layers in GPR-SLICE. This is useful for mapping concrete slab thickness and depth to bedrock or potentiometric surfaces (e.g. the water table).

[fvplayer src=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/gprslice/Horizon+Detection+in+GPR-SLICE.m4v” width=”1920″ height=”1080″]

This video explains how to automate the detection and mapping of hyperbolic reflectors within GPR datasets, and how to map the variation in signal amplitudes for radar traces that fall within the detected hyperbolae. This is particularly useful for mapping rebar in concrete and how to map corrosion of rebar across a site – all remotely, all using ground-penetrating radar.

[fvplayer src=”https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/gprslice/BridgeDeck+Hyperbola+Detection+in+GPR-SLICE.m4v” width=”1920″ height=”1080″]

You probably bought GPR data processing software when you bought your GPR. You’ll no doubt be wondering why you’d pay more for GPR-SLICE when you already have software. Well…

1. Frequent updates, which are included as part of an annual licence fee, keeps the user up-to-date with the latest ideas and options for GPR data processing. You don’t have to pay extra to get the updates!
2. The GPR-SLICE user’s Facebook group makes it easy to keep updated with industry best practice and to learn from other GPR operators.
3. For MALÅ and US Radar users – their software doesn’t have depth slicing capabilities. So GPR-SLICE is a must for them.
4. Fine-grained control over GPS and Total Station navigation for error correction improves survey accuracy, not present in most competing software packages.
5. Semi-automatic detection and mapping of buried layers (eg in soil, rock, asphalt, or concrete).
6. Semi-automatic detection and mapping of reinforcing bars in concrete.
7. Rapid data interpretation tools, which improves efficiency.
8. GPR-SLICE is suitable for literally any GPR use! No need to buy separate packages or learn new complicated programs if you decide to start offering different services using GPR (e.g. if you start out just doing buried pipe/cable locating, and then start doing concrete GPR work, or geological work, etc., GPR-SLICE can handle them all).
9. GPR-SLICE has a proven heritage of almost 30 years and is known to be reliable software.
10. Technical support is always available either via email, Zoom video meeting, or via the Facebook user’s group.

The majority of articles in ISAP News (the newsletter of the International Society for Archaeological Prospection) presenting ground-penetrating radar data use GPR-SLICE. There’s a reason for this!

You don’t have to believe me – get a 30-day demo and give it a try!