Spaced Out ::

Following on from the recent blog on my close range KAP photogrammetry comes another report from Technology Review looking at emergency response teams. Photosynth is the sub-headline and perhaps a little distracting because it’s not entirely clear whether there is anything related to it at all (”uses the algorithms behind the panorama-making software PhotoSynth”). However it does report on work using small unmanned aerial vehicles (SUAVs) to capture close range imagery and then, one assumes, their photogrammetric processing. The author refers to AirRobot quadrotor SUAVs and these are worth a look at for the size, flying time and ceiling (1000m). They look very capable and simple to use (although the camera is built in). Price, of course, is not noted. The researchers also appear to have developed their own software, RubbleViewer, for the processing. This is of particular interest so it will be fascinating to see a real product, one hopes soon. The key point will be the sorts of levels of accuracy that could be achieved.