Aerial surveys / Service

LiDAR surveys

What it is

LiDAR fires laser pulses at the ground and times how long they take to bounce back. Some pulses slip through gaps in the leaves, so it can map the true ground even under thick trees, which a camera alone can't do.

Each survey gives us a point cloud: millions of measured points in 3D space. We turn that into the models and maps below.

LiDAR point cloud of a forest plot in natural colour, on a black background.

Who it's for

Anyone who needs an accurate ground model, especially on sites that are wooded, uneven or hard to reach on foot: land managers, engineers, foresters and exploration teams.

What you get

A classified point cloud of the site
Digital Elevation Models (DEM), Digital Terrain Models (DTM) and Digital Surface Models (DSM)
Cross-sections and contours
Volume calculations, for example cut and fill or stockpile estimation
Forest inventory data (see forestry)
Power line corridor mapping

LiDAR ground heights are usually accurate to better than 5 cm. On one of our quarry surveys, the ground model's absolute accuracy was 2.6 cm (RMSE), checked against GNSS-surveyed ground markers. That meets RICS Band E for ground levels, as set out in the RICS standard Measured surveys of land, buildings and utilities.

We aim to deliver the data and report within 1 to 2 weeks, depending on the size of the job.

We fly this with a DJI M350 RTK drone and a Zenmuse L2 sensor.

The same forest point cloud, coloured by height from green to red.

A mound under trees

Trees cover half of this mound in Ireland. Drag the handle to remove them. The full project is on our archaeology page.

LiDAR surface model of a mound, coloured by height, with tall trees covering its lower half. — Drag the handle. Left: the surface model, including the trees. Right: the same area with the trees removed, showing the whole mound underneath.

LiDAR terrain model of the same mound with the trees removed, showing its full shape. — Drag the handle. Left: the surface model, including the trees. Right: the same area with the trees removed, showing the whole mound underneath.

LiDAR or photogrammetry?

LiDAR	Photogrammetry
Uncleared site with dense vegetation	Cleared site with sparse vegetation
Complex terrain	Photorealistic 3D models
Accurate ground models	Faster flight times
Most weather and lighting conditions	Map larger areas

For photogrammetry, multispectral, thermal and the sensors we bring in through partners, see how we work.

Ask for a quote: mail@geoklein.com