
The twin knows every valve on the unit. It has no idea which one the technician is facing, so the record stops where the fieldwork starts.




| Single-capture approach | Multi-capture approach | |
|---|---|---|
| How a site is covered | One scan, one map, one instrument | Many scans joined into one coordinate frame |
| Past one scan's range | Coverage stops | Add a map and it aligns against the set |
| Instrument choice | Whatever the pipeline accepts | Aerial for open areas, handheld for interiors, survey data where it exists |
| When an area changes | Re-capture the whole map | Re-scan the changed area into the same frame |
| Where the frame comes from | The vendor's pipeline | Your plant grid, georeferenced to WGS 84 |
Stated plainly: a refinery is never one scan. The question is whether dozens of scans compose into one frame or stay separate maps.
Related explainers: GPS-denied navigation and E57 to VPS.
Use cases: field inspection and verification and frontline operations in the field of view.
On a site still being built: visual positioning for construction.