Top tips for improving the accuracy of your drone maps.
No matter what you want to use your drone maps for, everyone should want to make their maps as accurate as possible so the data can be depended on. There are some simple, concrete ways to improve the accuracy of your drone maps and even take them to an advanced level for commercial use in agriculture, mining, construction and more. To see which other industries we specialise in.
HERE ARE OUR TIPS FOR IMPROVING YOUR DRONE MAP ACCURACY
1. KNOW THE DISTANCE
Before you can even start using your drone for mapping, you need to know the level of detail required to achieve the project results you’re looking for. You need to calculate your ground sampling distance and then plan the drone flights accordingly. Make sure to double check before you begin, as this will hugely affect accuracy in the long run.
2. CHECK THE WEATHER
It might sound obvious, but it’s best to fly when the sun is highest in the sky and there are no rolling clouds or strong winds. Many drones, especially the lighter models, can’t withstand strong winds so your drone imagery may come out blurry or with a poor quality. In the same way, clouds will create shadows and inconsistent light that won’t portray an accurate depiction of what is being mapped.
3. MAKE SURE YOU’RE USING HIGH QUALITY CAMERAS
To improve accuracy, you need to increase the resolution of your images by using cameras with powerful sensors. Not sure you have what you need? At DC Geomatics we offer drone services for all your project requirements, including achieving detailed and accurate maps.
4. LOWER YOUR ALTITUDE
The lower you fly, the more details you’re able to capture, and therefore the more data points you have to work with. This is crucial if you want to get an accurate map that demonstrates what is really being photographed.
5. TRY USING A CAMERA WITH A MECHANICAL SHUTTER
If you’ve had problems in the past with your images looking warped, it may be because you were using a drone with a rolling shutter which can cause the camera-object relation to change before the full image is recorded. With a mechanical shutter the sensor records all the lines of the frames simultaneously, rather than line by line, improving image quality and therefore the overall accuracy of the map.
These are our suggested ways to improve the precision of your drone maps, but if it all seems a bit confusing, then please get in touch to chat further!