Acquiring a professional drone system with the appropriate sensor for aerial photogrammetry is the first step in the process that will take you to the expected result.
This choice is obviously decisive since the quality of the photos and the calculation of the images overlap are the first key elements of the chain.
If the available equipment is now numerous, selecting the most effective and affordable software tools best suited to your needs is a major challenge.
The offer for post-processing software is already rich and still in full development.
Agisoft Metashape Pro, photogrammetry software
Agisoft is a pioneer in this field, with its Metashape – formerly PhotoScan – application available in Standard and Pro versions. It allows the automatic generation of classifiable dense point clouds, textured polygon models (3D model), geo-referenced orthomosaics, DSM-Digital Surface Models (DEM-Digital Elevation Model) and Digital Terrain Models (DTM).
From the multiple formats that can be exported, there are many possibilities, such as volumetric calculations, distance measurements, contour line generation and smoothing, and so on.
New: As official Agisoft training center, AltiGator can provide support and training upon request.
Data georeferencing with RTK, PPK or RPK methods
Georeferencing can be done in local mode (for vertical walls or multi-temporal comparisons that do not require very fine positioning information), in manual mode with GCPs (ground control points) or Google Earth coordinates (metric accuracy), or finally in automatic mode based on the positioning metadata contained in the EXIF of the images or imported in a second step.
To be accurate, this last technique must be based on data corrected in PPK (Post Processed Kinematics) or RPK (Re-processed Kinematics), which will allow to merge corrected coordinates with the images.
This can be done, for example, with the GeotagZ software from Septentrio -provided with the PPK version of the AsteRx-m2 UAS GNSS board embedded in the drone- in which will be loaded on one hand the images and the coordinates file recorded on board , and on the other hand either the file recorded by a precisely localized GNSS reception base (such as the Septentrio Altus-NR3) or the RINEX data obtained from a fixed base in real time (via NTRIP) or in PPK.
Global Mapper, all-in-one GIS software
Topographers and other professionals for whom these points clouds, orthophotos or DSM/DTM are a working basis can then open these files in a GIS and / or a CAD software, in order to vectorize them, integrate them in projects or serve as background map, etc.
Blue Marble Geographics is the editor of several applications in the field with Global Mapper, LIDAR module and GeoCalc, which give access to an unmatched variety of spatial datasets and provide the right level of functionality to satisfy both experienced GIS professionals and beginner users. More than a utility, Global Mapper has a surprisingly extensive set of data analysis and processing tools that support virtually all known spatial file formats as well as direct access to common spatial databases.
This application can read, write and analyze all your current data, and allows accurate map creation and optimized spatial data management. In addition to its powerful analytics tools, you will find a complete suite of raster and vector creation and editing features, from simple intuitive drawing to image correction and vectorization.
For a fraction of the cost of traditional GIS solutions, as well as flexible licenses – including a single user, network and USB Dongle license-, Global Mapper is a great tool to add to your software package.
Contact us for more details about these software and license purchase.
