Evaluation of Factors, Influencing the Accuracy of the Digital Model, Obtained by Laser Scanning

Abstract

Measurements in terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) are not perfect and are subject to errors caused by various factors affecting the quality of the capture process and the resulting final product. Careful consideration of all these factors and errors provides a good basis for assessing the quality of the data and the information received. The accuracy of the 3D model obtained from laser scanning is influenced by the density of the measurements and the modelling methods. 3D modelling algorithms allow accuracy to be improved, but modelling software cannot solve all the problems, and it is impossible to achieve high quality 3D modelling without taking into account the factors that affect the accuracy of the measurements. The investigation of error sources in TLS measurements is rather complicated due to the large number of influencing factors that are interconnected. In addition to angular and longitudinal measurements, most scanning systems also offer a measure of the intensity of the reflected signal. Because the TLS is a non-reflective geodetic technology, it means that the measurement results are highly dependent on the reflectivity of the materials. The energy of the reflected signal depends on the following physical factors: object material properties, surface colour of the object, surface temperature, surface humidity, illumination. From the experimental studies it has been confirmed that the illumination and humidity of the scanned surfaces have a significant impact on their reflecting ability and the density of the received point cloud. Evaluation of digital model accuracy is made with a plane approximation and comparison with control points. Areas with different point densities were created in order to analyse the accuracy of 3D model and to determine the optimum scanning density.