Drone topography is a revolutionary aerial inspection technique used by surveyors and engineers in the construction industry to prepare aerial data with downward-facing sensors. It is mainly used for land assessment and cartography, and can be done 90% faster than conventional surveying methods. Companies use drone mapping to recognize errors at the work site, track the progress of construction work, predict delays in schedules, etc. The collected data is processed using drone mapping software to create construction assets, such as 3D models, 2D maps and digital elevation models, from which high-precision measurements and volumetric calculations are performed. The drone collects high-precision data quickly, without the need for inspection personnel to walk over hazardous terrain or heights to collect the data.
Drone mapping drones are made of red, green and blue (RGB) visual images for photogrammetric, thermal, LiDAR or multispectral sensors to collect aerial data. The different maps or results collected from drone topography are orthomosaic maps, the digital surface model (DSM), the digital terrain model (DTM) and the contour maps. To carry out drone inspections with great precision, it is essential to accurately indicate the position of a drone in flight. This can be done using ground control points (GSP), a real-time kinematic study (RTK), or a kinematic post-processing study (PPK). GCPs are known points available on the ground whose coordinates are known.
GCPs allow the drone to provide accurate data about its location and the distance it moved between the two locations. PPK topography is a GPS correction technology that rectifies drone location data only after collecting and conserving the final survey data. It is done after the work of the site. This helps reduce field time and survey costs, while providing accurate and comprehensive data. Despite its many advantages, drone topography has some limitations. They have only small payload capacities.
The characteristics of the terrain are difficult to recognize or clarify without symbols and are sometimes hidden by other details of the terrain, such as buildings in wooden areas. Drone technology is constantly changing and, as the power of their batteries expands, the use of drones in construction is becoming increasingly practical. Many types of inspections have become safer, faster and more practical thanks to aerial inspection methods that use drones. A company that specializes in drone technology will be able to help a construction company comply with these regulations, especially since those regulations may change due to the relative novelty of drone technology. Drone data is susceptible to theft and hacking; it's important to take drone security and data protection measures seriously. Drones are very affordable, practical and cost-effective compared to other surveying and inspection techniques. The accuracy required depends entirely on the specific requirements of your project; however, the accuracy provided depends on the equipment and topography methodology employed by the surveyor or drone operator.
Drones require training to fly well, and aerial reconnaissance and scanning systems require more training and experience. Drones record images of the site from live unmanned aerial vehicle inspections and can even transmit them live to the laptop or tablet in real time. To perform highly accurate drone inspections, it is essential to accurately pinpoint the position of a drone in flight. The use of drones helps to cover larger land areas and to obtain topographic results from the combination of photogrammetry and topography techniques.
