CIG Ottawa Branch

Case Studies: High-resolution Orthorectified Aerial Imagery and Digital Surface Models

Small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are generating increasing interest in the field of geomatics due to their ability to collect very high-resolution (<10 cm/pixel) aerial imagery in a manner that is perceived to be timely, repeatable and economical for relatively small-scale areas. However, there are a number of inherent challenges to collecting high-grade geospatial data that meet established remote sensing standards with these small, lightweight aircraft compared to conventional airborne platforms. We present a series of case studies—comprised of various projects undertaken by UAS service provider ING Robotic Aviation—demonstrating both successes and lessons learned in the collection of aerial imagery as well as its post-processing into orthomosaics and digital surface models for various applications ranging from construction project planning to wildlife habitat monitoring. Solutions have been proposed and are in various stages of implementation to resolve or mitigate the principal challenges to generating high-grade data, chiefly achieving spectral consistency, geometric distortion-free imagery, and high-accuracy direct georeferencing without ground control points. Practical challenges mainly involve improving the automation of data collection and post-processing.

 

Dominique Chabot, PhD

Solutions Architect, Environment

ING Robotic Aviation

 

Dominique Chabot is Solutions Architect for environmental applications at ING Robotic Aviation, an Ottawa-based company that manufactures unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and provides UAS services. Dominique received a B.Sc. in Sciences at Université Sainte-Anne, Nova Scotia, followed by an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Wildlife Biology at McGill University, Quebec. Over the course of seven years, his graduate studies focused on developing, evaluating and implementing applications for small UAS in wildlife and habitat research and monitoring, culminating in several peer-reviewed journal publications.