Unlike traditional surveying which can take days to map out a site, a drone survey can be conducted in a matter of hours. Working together with a surveyor, Chesapeake Aerial Photo can set ground control points and map a site up to 50 acres in about an hour. (Larger sites just require more time on site.) We can usually supply final data within 48 hours from start to finish.
How does it work?
We place 5-10 portable targets around your site and use survey tools to record their precise position. Once in place, we fly our drone in a mapping pattern taking anywhere from 100-1000+ photos depending on the size of your site. As the drone takes each photo, it embeds GPS location data into the image file. This data is used when processing the map.
The photos are than stitched together using overlapping points found in each photo. The position of ground control points (which can be seen at the pixel level) is used to geographically align the photos and check points are used post processing to verify the data. When complete, our aerial images can use more than 1 million points to stitch and properly align the image.
How Accurate?
Our surveyed GCPs and drone mapping system results in highly accurate maps. We can usually obtain maps with a global accuracy of 1-2cm and a relative accuracy of 1cm or less.
Delivering the Data
Once complete, the data can be delivered in any of a number of formats. We can provide orthographic images, line topos, DSMs, 3D models and other data. You can use our cloud-based system to measure surface area, altitude/grades and volume. Data can also be exported for use in AutoCad, modeling and other software programs.
Contact us to learn more
To learn more about our full service drone mapping solutions, contact us today at 443-384-7427 or email jim@chesapeakeaerialphoto.com.
Aerial topo map overlaid on topo created with traditional methods. Note how lines match in areas where topography has not changed.