The airborne capture of measurement data has seen an enormous development over the past few years. Small, lightweight laser scanners can be deployed on drones, helicopters and airplanes worldwide now and provide high-precision data in such as areas as monitoring of power lines and gas pipeline routes, rail tracks and motorways, in surface mining and even in some fields of disaster relief and environmental protection. High-end solutions for flexible applications comprising high-performance sensors, optimally coordinated systems as well as innovative software are currently in particular demand.
RIEGL, a company from Horn in Austria, has been providing laser scanners and scanning systems for surveying for over 40 years. Their UAV sensors are used for a wide variety of, and at times by all means, extraordinary applications such as in an uncrewed helicopter for identifying endangered tree species in Indonesia, for example, reports Philipp Amon, Business Division Manager at RIEGL. In many Austrian and South Tyrol ski resorts snow height is constantly measured by UAV-based laser scanning to ensure ski slopes are optimally prepared. Most recently, the suitability of innovative UAVs has been tested for large-surface surveying tasks in the Swiss Alps to counter the ever-increasing danger of avalanches and landslides in Alpine regions.
Interplay of three components
Optimal results of kinematic data logging in airborne, UAV-based laser scanning require the interplay of three main “technical” components: laser scanner, GNSS-IMU system and camera. “System layout and calibration are of essential importance to the final results,” explains Amon. Another crucial aspect is the on-going optimisation of scanners in terms of size and weight. “Smaller drones call for a corresponding payload with small sizes and low weights. This requires you to carefully find a compromise that reconciles the demands made on reducing size and weight with the required performance parameters,” adds the expert.
Legal situation to be observed
The different legal frameworks governing flights should not be underestimated either. Amon makes it clear: “The areas of application for drone flights are currently growing rapidly on the one hand but are still in their infancy especially when it comes to legislation, on the other. New evaluations and adjustments are constantly being made here. In Europe it is therefore important to know the current provisions and regulations inside out.”
To fulfil the demands made by buyers on UAV sensors, these systems have to be flexible in use and offer an optimal cost-benefit ratio. This means that automated data logging and evaluation where possible and user friendliness play an important role. Optimally developed and constantly optimised software packages, integrated tools and Apps can support users. “We permanently extend our UAV LiDAR sensor range with a view to really providing optimal scanners for different focal applications,” stresses Amon and goes on to say: “In September 2024 we succeeded in extending our UAV-sensor portfolio to include the VUX-100-25; it boasts not only a very high effective measurement rate of up to 1.33 m meas./sec. and an operating flight altitude of up to 360 metres but also a large field of view of 160°. On the one hand, this makes it possible to cover a large target area, on the other, it also offers advantages in surveying complex terrains and narrow canyons (of streets) since scan shadows are reduced.”
Use also under the water surface
Research and development are key for the LiDAR system manufacturers. The RIEGL company is also involved in research projects of a wide variety of institutes and universities worldwide but especially active in Austria and Germany. Jointly with other enterprises they are also continuously working on the development of special systems. In cooperation with the Austrian drone manufacturer Schiebel, for example, a topobathymetric laser scanner and a UAV sensor were integrated into a Camcopter. The system as a whole captures high-precision topographic measurement data above the water surface but also “looks” below the water surface thereby allowing to log and survey complex and sensitive on and offshore terrains.
At XPONENTIAL Europe, which brings together experts for uncrewed systems and robotics in Düsseldorf from 18 - 20 February 2025, the latest laser scanners will be on show, to name but one product.
Author: Sonja Buske
