LiDAR
WHAT IS LiDAR?
LiDAR, or Light Detection and Ranging, works by sending out rapid laser pulses from a sensor toward a surface. These pulses bounce back to the sensor, and the system measures the time it takes for each pulse to return. By calculating this time and knowing the speed of light, the system determines the distance to the object or surface.
The LiDAR sensor attached to the drone does this repeatedly at very high speeds whilst flying a pre-determined mission over the subject site. The captured data is used to create detailed 3D model of the environment, showing surface shapes, elevation, and structures with high accuracy.
For environmental applications, drone-based LiDAR captures highly detailed terrain and vegetation data – even beneath dense canopies – surpassing photogrammetry in analysis depth. This makes it a fast and safe way to understand a site’s characteristics, making it ideal for applications including vegetation and biomass mapping, habitat and terrain assessment, erosion and landform monitoring, flood modelling, water planning, environmental engineering and environmental impact assessments.
how it works
1. Flight Planning
Flight planning includes site risk assessments, site visit and permit applications where applicable.
We also prepare a flight mission and access so data collection runs as smoothly as possible.
2. data collection
After arriving on site, we conduct a Job Safety Assesment and ensure everything is safe and ready.
Then we set out our Ground Control Points, and begin our pre-planned flight.
3. processing
We take the images and data collected and begin processing with specialised computers and software.
The data is calibrated and various, tailored outputs are computed and generated.
4. delivery & analysis
The generated deliverables are provided to our clients, along with optional ecological analysis and reports.
Results provide valuable infortmation for our clients to make informed decisions.
For highly accurate results, we use a combination of methods to provide our clients with quality data. Our drones are equipped with Real Time Kinematics (RTK), which is connected to our RTK Multifunction station during flight to correct positioning in real time.
For each project we also collect the known coordinates of Ground Control Points (GCPs) to tie the data together in the post-processing workflow.
Please note, although we can often obtain accuracy within a few centremeters, we are not professional surveyors. Results from our drone data cannot be used for legal scenarios such as property boundaries, but are beyond sufficient for most projects.
