Photogrammetry and 3D Terrestrial Laser Scanning with Rigorous Ground Control in an Industrial Setting

Commercially available scanners offer a high degree of automation in data collection and processing, and the technology is accessible to users with little knowledge or background in electronic distance and angle measurement, CAD, or three dimensional object modeling. A drawback to this is that it is difficult to gauge beyond manufacturer specifications actual errors in the scanning and modeling process, and automatic measurement can make it difficult to develop robust tests for accuracy and precision. This paper describes a comparison between close-range photogrammetry (CRP) and laser-scanning with a Cyra 2400 in process facilities. All of the data collected is compared against a rigorous ground-control network established using high-precision survey techniques. The objective of the research was to determine what significant errors exist between these systems through data collection, processing, and object modeling