EARTHMOVERS THAT USE ORTHOPHOTOS AND AERIAL MAPPING GET BETTER RESULTS
Whether it’s something you’ve read in our blogs or elsewhere, you know that utilizing drones and other technologies are advantageous in executing, managing, and controlling earthmoving projects in today’s fast-paced world. The days of looking at a job site with 2D paper models are mostly behind us. 3D Models, Digital Elevation Models, 3D Point Clouds and Orthophotos are way more common nowadays.
Let’s dig a little deeper into what orthophotos are and how they can be used regardless if you’re at the project conception or project completion stages.
Using Drone Data for Orthophotos
Digital mapping is the process of collecting and compiling data that is captured by a drone flight and then formatted into virtual images. These virtual images are used to produce accurately detailed maps of particular areas or more specifically for our purposes, of job sites. The drone mapping technique is known as photogrammetry, which is the science of making measurements from photographs. First, you must specify the flight path, it will then allow it to fly autonomously and capture information such as height and location. Once the drone flight is complete, it must be post processed. This will provide you with the data that you need to use an orthophoto as a visual reference of the current progress on the job site. An orthophoto is an aerial photograph that has been corrected for topographic relief, lens distortion, and camera tilt. Due to those adjustments, orthophotos can be used to measure exact distances because it is an true representation of the Earth’s surface. Another use for orthophotos in our industry is applying them to the background of your takeoff software when checking quantity updates.
Digital Mapping is useful in construction projects
How does a GeoTiff relate to Orthophotos?
A GeoTIFF has is the best format for georeferenced imagery for use in digital mapping. It is a public domain metadata (data about data) standard which allows georeferencing information to be embedded within a TIFF file. This file extension is used to store, transfer, and display large image files that also contain related geographic information. It is used a lot in drone surveying. Two primary visual outputs can be saved as GeoTIFFs: digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthophotos. GeoTIFFs are compatible with nearly all CAD and GIS applications and maintain their quality when compressed, edited, and transferred.
If you have any questions about drones usage in construction or need your flight post processed, give us a call!