2011 - Geoinformatics

Fig. 5 – This RIEGL VMX-250 Mobile Laser Scanning (MLS) measurement system comprises two
RIEGL VQ-250 scanners and accompanying inertial and GNSS navigation hardware. The system has
been mounted on a specially built frame on the boat that has been used to carry out the scanning of
the historic buildings along the Canal Grande, Venice. (Source: RIEGL)
a miniaturized GPS/IMU unit that allows the pre-programmed
autonomous flight of a 12 Megapixel camera over a site. Apparently
this flying wing drone has already been used to survey the remains
of ancient walls in Switzerland. Finally what was for me a fascinating
lecture within this session was that given by Dr. Dimitrios
Skarlatos of Cyprus University of Technology. He has investigated
and evaluated the quite staggering amount of free (or nearly-free)
open-source software or software components that are available on
the Web and can be used for the photogrammetric processing of
the images acquired using low-cost digital cameras. Much of this
information was simply unknown to me (and to other photogrammetrists
in the audience) and it needs to be publicized more widely
within the cultural heritage community as well.
The third Technical Session (TS-3) was entitled “Remote Sensing
Technologies & Single/Multi Image Approaches”. The presentations
included a description of the DART project at the University of Leeds
that is investigating the underlying physical, chemical and biological
properties and factors in the soil and vegetation that affect the
contrast in the images that have been recorded by aerial cameras
and, in turn, affect their interpretation for archaeological purposes.
This was supplemented by a contribution from Poland that investigated
the site formation of medieval landscapes in Pomerania.
Another presentation from Nottingham Trent University described a
new hyperspectral imaging system for the inspection and analysis of
wall paintings and other large surfaces, while Ian Anderson of
SiteScene described his work of monitoring and recording heritage
plasterwork within the ruined Cowdray Castle in West Sussex. Finally
Lindsay Macdonald, who is the Professor of Digital Media at the
London College of Communication, gave an interesting account of
his comparison of alternative photogrametric and photometric methods
of constructing a digital model of an Egyptian funerary urn, comparing
the results with the dense point cloud that has been generated
by a high-resolution Arius 3D colour laser triangulation scanner.
This work was done in collaboration with University College London
and the University of Parma.
The fourth Technical Session (TS-4) was concerned with “Data
Processing & 3D Modelling Solutions”. Contributions included the
E v e n t
development of automated texture mapping; the 3D modelling of
building interiors; and the development of the CityGrid software
suite for 3D city modelling by the Austrian UVM (Urban Visualisation
& Management) company. Next came a description of low-cost 3D
modelling as applied to the London City Wall project. Finally there
was an account given by Professor George Fraser of the Space
Research Centre of the University of Leicester of the use of Siemens’
Teamcenter data management and archiving software in the context
of the laser scanning of two tomb-monuments of the Howard Dukes
of Norfolk. Another interesting contribution within this area of 3D
modelling came from the Virtalis company and the British Geological
Survey (BGS). This described their joint development of the
GeoVisionary software for the 3D visualization and interpretation of
very large spatial data sets – though this contribution was, in fact,
presented in both the industry and poster sessions instead of TS-4.
The LFM software suite from Z+F – which provides a complete solution
from the initial registration of laser scan data to the final as-built
3D modelling – was also presented both in the industry session and
in the exhibition.
The fifth Technical Session (TS-5) had the title “Development of
Standards & Best Practice Applications”. It began with a most interesting
and thoughtful presentation by Dr. Stuart Jeffrey of the
Archaeological Data Service (ADS) at the University of York. This
expressed his views about the long-term archiving and maintenance
of the enormous volume of heritage data that is being generated by
photogrammetry and laser scanning, especially given the processing
and re-processing that is likely to occur in the foreseeable future.
He then went on to discuss the revision of the “Guides to Good
Practice” for the archiving of archaeological and heritage data that
the ADS has produced in partnership with the University of Arkansas
and Arizona State University. This work has been carried out in support
of the U.S.-based Digital Antiquity organisation that is concerned
with the preservation of and access to irreplaceable archaeological
records and data. It also oversees the use, development,
and maintenance of the Digital Archaeological Record (tDAR), which
is a unique digital repository for archaeological data. The other contributions
to this session included two separate accounts (i) of the
recent very detailed high-precision 3D survey of Stonehenge undertaken
on behalf of English Heritage by the Greenhatch Group, Atkins
Mapping and Archaeo-Environment Ltd. using Z+F Imager 5010
Fig. 6 – Inflating the Allsopp helikite prior to it being used as the platform for the lightweight digital
camera that has been used to carry out the low-altitude imaging survey of the Roman stone quarry at
Pitaranha, Portugal. (Source: G. Verhoeven)
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