Volumetric Analysis on Drone-based Photogrammetry Data
- Arpit Shah
- Oct 6, 2020
- 2 min read
Updated: Dec 8
Aerial datasets acquired through Remote Sensing—whether via satellite, aircraft, or drone—can be processed to support a wide range of analytical workflows. Typically, the imagery or videography captured over a study area comes with positional information attached to it. Every pixel corresponds to a coordinate on (or above) the Earth’s surface, which is what enables us to analyze these datasets as geospatial information using GIS software.
Explore my post on 10 Industrial Applications of Drones here.
Drones deployed for aerial surveys generally use a photogrammetry payload which captures information across the three dimensions—X (length), Y (width) and Z (height)—with high precision. This allows one to create an accurate, life-like digital twin of the study area in 3D. Once generated, this 3D dataset can be processed further to perform measurements and quantitative analysis.
This post demonstrates exactly that: Volumetric Analysis on drone-acquired photogrammetry data to determine the storage capacity of a Stormwater retention basin.
The analysis was performed (Credit: LearnArcGIS) using ArcGIS Drone2Map.
The video demonstration below is best viewed in HD mode on YouTube—either on a PC or in landscape mode on a mobile phone. Adjust the playback speed to match your viewing preference.
Interesting, isn’t it?
The underlying concept is simple, yet the capacity computation would not have been possible without access to a high-quality photogrammetry dataset, which the specialized drone software processes conveniently and efficiently. Although I demonstrated quantitative analysis on a hollowed surface, the same method applies equally well to raised surfaces—for instance, estimating the volume of a sulphur stockpile at a port or iron-ore at a mine.
Can you think of other workflows that could benefit from quantitative measurements derived from photogrammetry data? Do share your thoughts.
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