Analysis of the Multipass Approach for Collection and Processing of Mobile Laser Scan Data
Publication: Journal of Surveying Engineering
Volume 143, Issue 3
Abstract
The standard method in surveying practice for adjusting mobile terrestrial laser scan (MTLS) data to correct for global navigation satellite system (GNSS) positioning errors consists of placing a detailed network of surveyed control targets along the corridor being scanned. Although this approach is easy to understand and implement, it is suboptimal with regard to accuracy, efficiency, and safety. Fortunately, the rapid data acquisition that characterizes MTLS enables the user to quickly obtain repeated independent measurements, providing a simple method to examine potential errors that may be present in an individual pass. These multiple passes can be statistically combined and input with GNSS and inertial measurement unit (IMU) data to allow adjustment of the vehicle trajectory. This paper investigates this new multipass approach (MPA) of collecting and processing MTLS data, which reduces control requirements, resulting in significant improvements in accuracy and economic and safety benefits. In this paper, two case studies using MPA are discussed, and the obtained data are analyzed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the MPA. In one of the case studies, GNSS conditions were poor; in the other case study, GNSS conditions were ideal. From these cases studies, the appropriate intervals for control targets were determined based on the desired level of accuracy. In both cases, the multipass approach was shown to be effective in significantly improving accuracy and reducing the need for dense control target networks.
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Acknowledgments
The University of California authors acknowledge the Office of Land Surveys within Caltrans for support of this work. McMullen Nolan Group would also like to thank Wayne Carnell, Greg Myers, and staff at the Department of Main Roads, Western Australia, and Neville Janssen, Tony Kirchner, John E. Allsop, and others at Transport and Main Roads, Queensland, for their support and assistance. Coauthor Olsen acknowledges partial funding support through National Science Foundation Grant CMMI-1351487. Finally, we thank the organizers of the 2015 Mobile Mapping Technology Conference in Sydney, Australia.
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Published In
Journal of Surveying Engineering
Volume 143 • Issue 3 • August 2017
Copyright
© 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Mar 31, 2016
Accepted: Jan 12, 2017
Published online: Mar 30, 2017
Published in print: Aug 1, 2017
Discussion open until: Aug 30, 2017
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