Category Archives: Lidar/Imaging
Building a Solid Case: Forensic Mapping (and Ghost Clouds)
A Washington State Patrol officer improves the use of laser scanning for investigations by integrating field and office processes. Rod Green has been doing accident and crime scene reconstructions for 14 years. In addition to collecting and analyzing information, Green is working to improve the reconstruction process on-scene and in the office. His work is drawing...
BLK360 + ReCap Pro: Collaboration for Reality Capture
Autodesk and Leica Geosystems collaborate on a highly anticipated scanning solution, the BLK360: practical, high-precision reality capture for everyone. We see so much written about 3D, BIM, and virtual and augmented worlds; it is easy to wax poetically about the potential for spatial analysis, automated feature recognition, space planning, and 3D design. There is much to...
Yaw, Pitch, and Roll
Nautical lidar works for a waterway bridge replacement project in Boston. Waterway projects can pose major challenges for surveyors and engineers needing survey-grade data because of unpredictable variables in the marine environment. Surveyors face inaccessible areas, tidal changes, marine traffic, and unpredictable weather, as a few examples. The Massachusets department of transportation (MassDOT) undertook an...
Unmanned Lidar in the Air
A discourse on UAV lidar from the perspectives of a vendor and a user. IS A UAV LIDAR SYSTEM REALISTIC? While UAV lidar is definitely a breakthrough for vendors and users alike, is it enough? Can UAV photogrammetry deliver what is really needed by the surveyor and engineer? Indeed it can, but only in part....
Tech Feats for a X-Country Course
A 3D data company created a photo-realistic cross-country-course simulation using mobile mapping, with more innovation to come. When the best collegiate runners take their marks at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in Wisconsin next year, the course will be as familiar as their favorite training routes. Above: Plans are underway to create treadmill routines that match the...
The GeoDude on Scanning Efficiency
A Snapshot from the GeoDude on Rich Data Here’s a comparison of today’s field and office efficiencies—for conventional surveying methods versus laser scanning—as applied to topographic and site surveys. Above: The firm that used scanning for this site survey noted that more than 60% of these types of projects entail scope creep; scanning typically avoids go-backs....