The following project is a comprehensive study incorporating different methods of aerial control used to reference a UAS mapping project. As surveyors continue to incorporate UAS mapping into their jobs, many of them have used different methods of capturing control points on the ground when georeferencing them into their jobs and different sensors to capture data. This project will analyze different methods of capturing control, different sensors that can be used, as well as finding which surfaces on the ground yield higher and more precise coordinates. Conventional surveying equipment typically provides an accuracy of one part in 5000, otherwise known as an accuracy of 5 hundredths of a foot. This as an industry has been acceptable tolerances that most robotic total stations capture today in conventional topographic surveying. However, would it be possible to use new UAS technology along with conventional photogrammetry and lidar in order to meet the same standards in the surveying industry? The project location takes place on a freeway intersection in Detroit MI. Conventional topographic surveying would require having personnel on the freeway lanes, exit ramps, and overpass bridges, which raises some concern in terms of safety. This is a project where UAS could be utilized to capture the data more efficiently and in a safe manner as field crews will not be subject to working in harsh conditions. This analysis will measure the data captured from UAS with ground control points set on soft surfaces such as the grass, ground control points set on harder surfaces such as pavement, and conventional topographic surveying check shot points with a total station as our benchmark. In addition, both sets of ground control points will be observed in 3 methods, the first will be real time kinematic corrections through network CORS stations. The second will be static observations where each control point will be observed for one to two hours. The final observation will be taken through survey total station. These 3 methods of data collection will be compared to see if an increase in accuracy of the control points affects the overall accuracy of the project, and if the type of surface the control point is set on affects the accuracy of the project. This entire process will be repeated with two types of sensors. The first will be a standard RGB Camera performing photogrammetry. The second will be using a lidar sensor. The goal is not only to find the most accurate method of capturing data, but also the most time efficient and cost effective for industry use. While surveyors are concern with gather data on the ground and representing it accurately, there is a threshold that must be met but exceeding the threshold can sometimes be an inefficient form of practice. Understanding what the project's needs can determine equipment needed by the surveyor. An industry like surveying holds technology to a high standard before it is universally accepted as a tool for the industry.
