Main Subcommittee Category: Simulation

How would you label your submission?: Academia

Abstract:

Images collected by an unmanned aerial system (UAS) provide a unique dataset that can be used to create realistic 3D reconstructions through photogrammetric post-processing. The accuracy of the 3D reconstructions is strongly influenced not only by spatial resolution of the captured imagery, but equally by flight image capture strategy, such as flight path or altitude, and reconstruction method. Current UAS mission planning software and reconstruction techniques and tools are limited in regards to optimizing UAS flight paths based on a user’s needs to account for restricted environments, managing reconstruction processing time, and reconstruction product quality.

This paper will present the current state of mission planning and reconstruction techniques and tool capabilities including a discussion of the main limitations experienced by current approaches. The paper will also describe the challenges encountered and improved techniques for flight path optimization, especially when accounting for the user’s preference in flight parameters and reconstruction quality. These techniques have been implemented in prototype software and we will discuss the following techniques developed for optimization:

UAS mission planning process from the creation of optimized flight paths to the execution of a photogrammetric reconstruction pipeline on the captured images
Capability to implement avoidance zones within a survey area requiring polygon decomposition and optimal path combinations of unique shapes
Strict adherence to user-defined flight boundaries
Utilizing UAS terrain following and variable image capturing methods based upon the underlying terrain in the area of interest
Recommending flight optimization parameters based on the user’s preference

The resulting improvements lead to a more rapid generation of terrain products while targeting the specific needs for a variety of applications from training systems to operational employment.

Keywords: TERRAIN;UAV

Additional Keywords not in the list above: UAS Flight Planning, 3D Reconstruction, Photogrammetry

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Benjamin Helgeson