Archaeological Topography: Comparing Digital Photogrammetry Taken with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) versus Standard Surveys with Total Stations

Summary

This paper addresses how Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are used as a platform to produce accurate topographic maps with a considerable reduction in time and costs associated with fieldwork when compared with a total station. For this study, data was collected in the controlled environment of a mapping course to compare the procedures and time required to train archaeology students in the operation of a total station versus the operation of a small UAV equipped with digital cameras. An artificial mound of 3 ha was mapped with both a total station and the UAV. On average the UAV platform captured topographic data 27 times faster than the total station.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Archaeological Applications of Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage