Inaccuracy of relative elevations on uavbased digital elevation models without precise reference information
https://doi.org/10.24057/2071-9388-2024-3123
Abstract
Imagery obtained from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is widely used for land surface modelling. Recent research prove that digital elevation models (DEMs) created from UAV imagery are characterized by a high rate of accuracy and reliability. Most of these studies are focused on assessing absolute elevation accuracy of the UAV DEMs, but the accuracy of relative elevations (i.e., accuracy of reproducing of local elevation differences within DEM) also should be considered. In this paper, we focus on the precision of replicating relative elevations in DEMs derived from imagery captured via UAVs without precise coordinate reference. To evaluate this accuracy, we use datasets of aerial images processed in two different methods: one with on-board coordinates obtained from a GNSS receiver, and the other based on precise coordinates calculated with the Post-Processing Kinematic (PPK) method. The sites selected for assessment are not look like each other in terms of terrain and forest cover characteristics to track the difference of modelling in the divergent areas. Constructed DEMs were compared with reference fragments of global DEMs by the statistical indices for the difference fields. The findings indicate that the absence of an accurate coordinate reference does not have a substantial impact on the precision of reproducing relative elevations in the DEM. This makes it possible to use UAV materials without precise coordinate reference for modelling in most geographical studies, where the error of terrain steepness values of 0.9° can be considered acceptable.
Keywords
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV),
unmanned aerial imagery,
digital elevation model (DEM),
digital surface model (DSM),
GNSS,
post-processing kinematic,
accuracy,
relative elevations
Supporting agencies: Geoscan Gemini UAV, hardware and Agisoft Metashape software were provided by the Centre of Collective Usage “Geoportal MSU”. Aerial photography of Site 1 was supported by RSF project 21-17-00058. Aerial photography of the Site 2, processing and analysis of the results were carried out under the state assignment (project number 121051400061-9).
About the Authors
Victoria V. Zorina
Department of Cartography and Geoinformatics, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Leninskie Gory 1, Moscow 119991
Andrey L. Entin
Department of Cartography and Geoinformatics, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Leninskie Gory 1, Moscow 119991
References
1. ALOS Global Digital Surface Model (DSM) Product Description. (2019) Earth Observation Research Center, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
2. ASF engineering. (2015). ASF Radiometrically Terrain Corrected ALOS PALSAR products. Product guide
3. ASTER Global DEM Validation Summary Report. (2009). ASTER GDEM Validation Team: METI/ERSDAC, NASA/LPDAAC, USGS/EROS. In cooperation with NGA and Other Collaborators
4. Barba S., Barbarella M., Di Benedetto A., Fiani M., Gujski L. and Limongiello M. (2019). Accuracy Assessment of 3D Photogrammetric Models from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. Drones, 3(4), 79. DOI: 10.3390/drones3040079
5. Benassi F., Dall’Asta E., Diotri F., Forlani G., Morra di Cella U., Roncella R. and Santise M. (2017). Testing Accuracy and Repeatability of UAV Blocks Oriented with GNSS-Supported Aerial Triangulation. Remote Sensing, 9(2), 172. DOI: 10.3390/rs9020172
6. Biljecki F., Ledoux H. and Stoter J. (2016). Generation of multi-LOD 3D city models in CityGML with the procedural modelling engine Random3Dcity. ISPRS Annals of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, IV-4/W1, 51–59. DOI: 10.5194/isprs-annalsIV-4-W1-51-2016
7. Deev E., Borodovskiy A. and Entin A. (2023). Earthquake-induced deformation at archaeological sites in southeastern Gorny Altai (Siberia, Russia). Archaeological Research in Asia, 34, 100431. DOI: 10.1016/j.ara.2023.100431
8. Eisenbeiss H. (2009). UAV photogrammetry, 1 Band [ETH Zurich; Application/pdf ]. DOI: 10.3929/ETHZ-A-005939264
9. Famiglietti N.A., Cecere G., Grasso C., Memmolo A. and Vicari A. (2021). A Test on the Potential of a Low Cost Unmanned Aerial Vehicle RTK/PPK Solution for Precision Positioning. Sensors, 21(11), 3882. DOI: 10.3390/s21113882
10. Farr T.G., Rosen P.A., Caro E., Crippen R., Duren R., Hensley S., Kobrick M., Paller M., Rodriguez E., Roth L., Seal D., Shaffer S., Shimada J., Umland J., Werner M., Oskin M., Burbank D. and Alsdorf D. (2007). The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. Reviews of Geophysics, 45(2), RG2004. DOI: 10.1029/2005RG000183
11. Ferreira Z. and Cabral P. (2021). Vertical Accuracy Assessment of ALOS PALSAR, GMTED2010, SRTM and Topodata Digital Elevation Models: Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Geographical Information Systems Theory, Applications and Management, 116–124. DOI: 10.5220/0010404001160124
12. Fujisada H., Urai M. and Iwasaki A. (2012). Technical Methodology for ASTER Global DEM. IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 50(10), 3725–3736. DOI: 10.1109/TGRS.2012.2187300
13. Geoscan Gemini Manual. (2023).
14. Guan S., Zhu Z. and Wang G. (2022). A Review on UAV-Based Remote Sensing Technologies for Construction and Civil Applications. Drones, 6(5), 117. DOI: 10.3390/drones6050117
15. Hawker L., Uhe P., Paulo L., Sosa J., Savage J., Sampson C. and Neal J. (2022). A 30 m global map of elevation with forests and buildings removed. Environmental Research Letters, 17(2), 024016. DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ac4d4f
16. Ihsan H.M. (2021). Vertical accuracy assessment on Sentinel-1, ALOS PALSAR, and DEMNAS in the Ciater Basin. Jurnal Geografi Gea, 21 (1), 16-25.
17. Kaplan E.D., Hegarty J. (2017) Understanding GPS: principles and applications, 2nd edn. Artech House, London
18. Karlson M., Bastviken D., Reese H. (2021) Error Characteristics of Pan-Arctic Digital Elevation Models and Elevation Derivatives in Northern Sweden. Remote Sens, 13, 4653. DOI: 10.3390/rs13224653
19. Liu X., Lian X., Yang W., Wang F., Han Y. and Zhang Y. (2022). Accuracy Assessment of a UAV Direct Georeferencing Method and Impact of the Configuration of Ground Control Points. Drones, 6(2), 30. DOI: 10.3390/drones6020030
20. Meadows M., Jones S., Reinke K. (2024) Vertical accuracy assessment of freely available global DEMs (FABDEM, Copernicus DEM, NASADEM, AW3D30 and SRTM) in flood-prone environments, International Journal of Digital Earth, 17(1), DOI: 10.1080/17538947.2024.2308734
21. Mohamad N., Ahmad A. and Md Din A.H. (2022). A review of UAV photogrammetry application in assessing surface elevation changes. Journal of Information System and Technology Management, 7(25), 195–204. DOI: 10.35631/JISTM.725016
22. Neitzel F. and Klonowski J. (2012). Mobile 3D mapping with a low-cost UAV system. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XXXVIII-1/C22, 39–44. DOI: 10.5194/isprsarchives-XXXVIII-1-C22-39-2011
23. Ngula Niipele J. and Chen J. (2019). The usefulness of alos-palsar dem data for drainage extraction in semi-arid environments in The Iishana sub-basin. Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies, 21, 57–67. DOI: 10.1016/j.ejrh.2018.11.003
24. Noh M.-J. and Howat I.M. (2017). The Surface Extraction from TIN based Search-space Minimization (SETSM) algorithm. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 129, 55–76. DOI: 10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2017.04.019
25. Padró J.-C., Muñoz F.-J., Planas J. and Pons X. (2019). Comparison of four UAV georeferencing methods for environmental monitoring purposes focusing on the combined use with airborne and satellite remote sensing platforms. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, 75, 130–140. DOI: 10.1016/j.jag.2018.10.018
26. Porter C. (2018). 2m Topography and Surface Change Detection over the Arctic. Blue waters symposium
27. Saberi, A., Kabolizadeh, M., Rangzan, K. & Abrehdary, M. (2023). Accuracy assessment and improvement of SRTM, ASTER, FABDEM, and MERIT DEMs by polynomial and optimization algorithm: A case study (Khuzestan Province, Iran). Open Geosciences, 15(1), 20220455. DOI: 10.1515/geo-2022-0455
28. Siemonsma D. (2015). The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) Collection User Guide.
29. Suchilin A., Belaya N., Voskresensky I., Mikheeva S., Zorina V., Ushakova L., Shaforostov V. and Sokratov S. (2021). Methods for studying the morphology of abrasion-accumulative coast of the West coast of the Crimea using UAV and GNSS (on the example of a land of the territory of Great Sevastopol). InterCarto. InterGIS, 27(1), 351–363. DOI: 10.35595/2414-9179-2021-1-27-351-363
30. Svistunov M.I., Kurbanov R.N., Murray A.S., Taratunina N.A., Semikolennykh D.V., Entin A.L., Deev Ye.V., Zolnikov I.D. and Panin A.V. (2022). Constraining the age of Quaternary megafloods in the Altai Mountains (Russia) using luminescence. Quaternary Geochronology, 73, 101399. DOI: 10.1016/j.quageo.2022.101399
31. Szypuła B. (2023). Accuracy of UAV-based DEMs without ground control points. GeoInformatica. DOI: 10.1007/s10707-023-00498-1
32. Takaku J., Tadono T. and Tsutsui K. (2014). Generation of High-Resolution Global DSM from ALOS PRISM. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XL–4, 243–248. DOI: 10.5194/isprsarchives-XL-4-243-2014
33. Tomaštík J., Mokroš M., Surový P., Grznárová A. and Merganič J. (2019). UAV RTK/PPK Method—An Optimal Solution for Mapping Inaccessible Forested Areas? Remote Sensing, 11(6), 721. DOI: 10.3390/rs11060721
34. Topcon HiPer V – user manual. (2012Copyright Topcon Positioning Systems, Inc
35. Uuemaa E., Ahi S., Montibeller B., Muru M., Kmoch A. (2020) Vertical Accuracy of Freely Available Global Digital Elevation Models (ASTER, AW3D30, MERIT, TanDEM-X, SRTM, and NASADEM). Remote Sens., 12, 3482. DOI: 10.3390/rs12213482
36. Uysal M., Toprak A.S. and Polat N. (2015). DEM generation with UAV Photogrammetry and accuracy analysis in Sahitler hill. Measurement, 73, 539–543. DOI: 10.1016/j.measurement.2015.06.010
Review
For citations:
Zorina V.V., Entin A.L. Inaccuracy of relative elevations on uavbased digital elevation models without precise reference information. GEOGRAPHY, ENVIRONMENT, SUSTAINABILITY. 2024;17(2):26-35. https://doi.org/10.24057/2071-9388-2024-3123
Views:
514
Email this article 