Using UAVs to conduct aerial surveys has proven to be safer and less time consuming than traditional methods. High Eye Aerial is committed to acquiring accurate surveys by creating unique flights for specific projects. With a growing demand for LiDAR surveys, High Eye is providing solutions by performing these services for its clients.
What is LiDAR?
LiDAR stands for Light Detection and Ranging. Its active sensors provide their own source of energy to illuminate the objects they observe. If the object is in the shade or in a dark area, the active sensors provide light to those objects to get an accurate survey.
These surveys can be done from a plane, helicopter, or a UAV with a sensor attached that sends a pulsed laser beam to the ground. When the pulse returns, the reflection time is used to calculate the point of contact with a high degree of accuracy. A collection of these points can build a precise 3D image of the area being scanned. The system can read the ground or anything above ground. The above ground imagery can be removed to reveal true ground/terrain, along with rocks, crops, or even leaves that are on the ground.
What is the demand for LiDAR?
The demand for LiDAR is increasing rapidly. The LiDAR market is expected to exceed more than US $3 billion by 2022 and will grow at a compound annual growth rate of more than 12.1% in the given forecast period.
LiDAR Success
In Guatemala, there is an ancient ruin called Tikal. Using LiDAR it was discovered the ruins are actually larger than originally thought. The LiDAR survey found that there were more than 60,000 houses, palaces, and highways hidden under the jungle. The ruins were discovered by digitally removing the forest canopy to reveal the unknown structures. It was originally estimated that the population was about 5 million people, now they believe the population could have been 10-15 million people. Because of LiDAR, history from 1,200 years ago can possibly be revealed.
High Eye Aerial Imaging provides LiDAR surveying for multiple industries including; aggregates and mining, agricultural, construction and civil, industrial and commercial, and hydrological and environmental.
Specifically, in mining there are multiple reasons to use LiDAR surveying. It is a quick and easy way to plan efficiently for certain operations, such as the re-routing of roads, performing slope analysis, and the surveying of blast materials and stockpiles.
The time spent surveying reduces and increases the safety of workers. There are mines that have difficult areas to get to, so by using airborne LiDAR they are able to get to the difficult and unsafe areas. They can get more accurate surveys quicker and at a lower cost. Some companies have people surveying for multiple days. UAV-based LiDAR surveys, however, can collect data of the whole mine in just a few hours, depending on the mine size. The outputs from the surveys is quickly evaluated so management can make quick decisions and plan accordingly.
UAV-based LiDAR provides an objective aerial perspective of any area of interest. For more information about High Eye Aerial's LiDAR surveying services, please find them online at www.higheyeaerial.com or reach email Jean-Francois Dionne at jfdionne@higheyeaerial.com.