Input files contain the XYZ coordinates. If three filenames are given, they all should be single band files each containing X, Y and Z values in that order. If only one filename is given, it should be a 3-band file with bands in (X,Y,Z) order. The input files are in REAL (float) format. If -NO_XYZ is given, then the input need not be an XYZ file, but can in fact be any image with PIG-compatible labels (from which a camera model can be derived). The Volume filters are disabled, however.
Output file containing the mask. The output file is in BYTE format, with 255 representing a point inside a filter element, and 0 for points outside..
Input XML file containing an extra filter, typically one specific to this input file. It is loaded in addition to the common filter of the FILTER parameter, and the resulting masks are merged. This is used by MSL, where the extra filter is a filter tailored to the specific image's kinematic state by the MSLFILTER program.
Input XML file containing the common filter description to use. If this parameter is not specified, an attempt is made to automatically find the file based on CONFIG_PATH. See the main help text for a description of the algorithm.
Numeric parameters for use with some filters. For example, the optional "rotate" element of the volume shapes can add a value from PARAMS to the rotation angle. Note that indexing of PARAMS starts at 1 (0 meaning no value), so the first element of PARAMS would correspond to add_angle="1" in the XML file. The use of PARAMS, and the interpretation of each value, dependends on the filter in use. The filter file should describe which, if any, parameters are used.
Override for the horizon mask elevation, in degrees. The file must contain a <horizon> entry or this parameter will be ignored. The horizon mask can be effectively disabled by providing an elevation greater than 90.
This parameter causes all the filters to be printed to stdout (including the results of projecting polygons to image space). It can be useful for debugging. By default, this is off (which is a change as of 2012/03/22; before printing was always on).
This parameter causes the object number (derived from "id" in the xmlf file) to be used as the mask value rather than 255. This is intended for debugging/setup and helps find what polygon is causing issues in a mask. It's actually the value mod 256 to fit in a byte (so it could be either 2 or 258, for example).
If -NO_XYZ is specified, then the input file need not be an XYZ image, but rather any image with a PIG-compatible label. The capability to do Volume masks is turned off in this case. This can be useful in situations where volume masks are not important (such as MSL) and it is desired to get a mask for a non-stereo image.
Specifies whether or not to enable RMC checking in the filter mask file. Checking is on by default. If -NO_RMC is on, checking is disabled, as if there were no rmcX attributes in the mask file.
A colon-separated list of directories in which to look for configuration and calibration files. Environment variables are allowed in the list (and may themselves contain colon-separated lists). The directories are searched in order for each config/cal file when it is loaded. This allows multiple projects to be supported simultaneously, and allows the user to override any given config/cal file. Note that the directory structure below the directories specified in this path must match what the project expects. For example, Mars 98 expects flat fields to be in a subdirectory named "flat_fields" while Mars Pathfinder expects them to be directly in the directory specified by the path (i.e. no intermediate subdirectories).
Specifies a mission-specific pointing method to use. Normally this parameter is not used, in which case the "default" pointing methods are used. Some missions may have special, or alternate, pointing methods available, which are indicated by this string (for example, backlash models, using arm joint angles instead of x/y/z/az/el, etc). A substring search is used, so multiple methods (where that makes sense) can be specified by separating the keywords with commas. Note that nav files created using one pointing method will most likely not be compatible with a mosaic created using a different pointing method. The methods available vary per mission, but some methods available at the time of this writing are: BACKLASH : Mars 98 SSI only. Selects a backlash pointing model, which adjusts the telemetered azimuth and elevation values based on knowledge of the camera's mechanical backlash and the direction the motor was travelling when the image was taken.
Disables all label-derived parameters to the Site mechanism which underlies coordinate systems. This forces all sites to be identical, with all rotations and offsets set the same. In the case of MPF or Mars 98, this disables the lander quaternion and offset (sets them to identity and 0, respectively). This option should not be used with images taken from different vantage points (e.g. the spacecraft moved, or mixing a lander and a rover) or invalid results will be obtained. The use of this option invalidates the Fixed coordinate frame; any values reported in the Fixed frame will not correctly reflect the orientation of the lander/rover. Obviously, this option should be rarely used; it is intended for when the image labels defining the site are invalid or inconsistent.
Rover State File. This is a list of filenames to load containing Rover State information. These files contain position and orientation information for a rover (or other mobile spacecraft) at various sites. They are in XML format. See the "Rover Motion Counter (RMC) Master File SIS" for details on these files. Rover State Files have a priority order. The files listed first have the highest priority. Environment variables may be used in the list. For MER, if a directory is specified, then that directory is searched for RMC Master files and any found are loaded. The directory structure and filename convention is covered in the RMC SIS. The directory specified is the one containing "master", so if <dir> is the name specified in the RSF parameter, the following files will be searched for: <dir>/master/_Master.svf <dir>/master/ _Site_ _Master.rvf The name of each file loaded is printed to the stdout log for reference.
If enabled, this causes the internal database of RMC locations to be printed out to the stdout log. This is after the RSF files have been loaded and the coordinate systems read from the input label(s).
The coordinate system to use for the output UVW vectors. The interpretation
of the values is dependent on the mission. Some representative missions are
listed here:
Fixed - The Fixed frame. This is the ultimate reference frame
(see also FIXED_SITE for rover missions).
Instrument - (default) The "natural" frame for the instrument
(of the first input image). MPF: Lander or Rover; M98: MVACS; MER: Rover.
Site - A major Site frame. For rover missions, COORD_INDEX specifies which
Site frame to use. Non-rover missions treat this as Fixed.
Rover - An instance of the Rover frame. For rover missions, COORD_INDEX
specifies which instance of the rover frame to use. Non-rover mission
use the spacecraft frame (e.g. Lander for M98).
Local_Level - An instance of a Local Level frame. This is typically
coincident with the Rover frame (in XYZ) but oriented toward North
like the Site and Fixed frames. For MER, this is an instance of a
Drive index move.
The index specifies which instance of a coordinate system to use. It is currently applicable only to rover-based missions, but could have other uses. The index is equivalent to the Rover Motion Counter (RMC) for MER and FIDO. For MER/FIDO, there are many Site frames. Each is numbered with a single index. For Site Frames, coord_index specifies which to use. Likewise, there are many Local_Level and Rover frames, corresponding to values of the RMC. The multiple instances of this frame are selected by COORD_INDEX. Generally COORD_INDEX defaults sensibly so you don't usually need to specify it. It will default to the instance used by the first input.
Specifies which major Site is the "Fixed" Site for this run.
Historically, MPF and M98 had a single "Surface Fixed" frame which never
moved, and which all other coordinate system frames were referenced to.
With the advent of long-range rovers (such as MER and FIDO), that became
insufficient. The rover traverses far enough that errors in knowledge of
coordinate system offset and orientation become unacceptable.
For this reason, a system of major Sites was introduced. Periodically
during the mission, a Site frame is declared. This then becomes the
reference frame for all activities until the next Site is declared.
References are kept local, and errors don't propogate across Sites.
However, if images from more than one Site are combined together, the
Site's must be placed relative to each other. Therefore a single reference
frame is still needed to combine different sites.
The FIXED_SITE parameter controls which of the major Site frames is
the reference ("fixed") site for this program run. This fixed frame
can vary in different program runs, but is constant throughout one
execution.
If not specified, FIXED_SITE defaults to the minimum Site number (i.e.
lowest numbered, or earliest chronologically) used in all input images.
Normally this default is sufficient; rarely must FIXED_SITE be specified.
One or more Rover State Files must usually be specified in order to combine
image from more than one Site. These describe the relationship between
sites. See the RSF parameter.
Specifies which solution ID to use when specifying the coordinate system. There are potentially many different definitions for the same coordinate system. These are identified via a unique Solution ID. If this parameter is given, only the specified solution's definition is searched for. Without it, the "best" available solution is chosen. It is extremely rare that this parameter should be needed. The default will be sufficient in almost every case. Note that the current MER implementation requires that a value for COORD_INDEX also be provided, in order for this parameter to take effect.