LiDAR
The Lone Star Drone Difference
LiDAR Services
< 5cm of accuracy
or you don't pay!
We aim for 1mm, but guarantee ±5cm
Ready to use!
Our deliverables are ready to use upon delivery.
Fast and better
We can capture 1k or more acres a day.
Using the most advanced systems available, we can create detailed scans of both terrain and physical objects. The engineering industry has begun to use the scans and maps for increasingly more creative solutions. From asset management through comparative LiDAR modeling, to creating entire construction sites in a simulated 3D environment, LiDAR scans can give engineers the tools they need to push the envelope of what is possible.
Property Development Solutions
Worksite and Product Volume Solutions
Mapping and Topography Solutions
Asset Management Solutions
Other LiDAR solutions we offer:
Lifecycle Analysis
Vegetation Management
Automation Solutions
Digital Twin Modeling
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Some of the ways we have assisted our clients:
Survey
Property Development
Engineering Modeling
Agriculture
Vegetation Management
Energy Sector Inspection
Architectural
Underwater Mapping
Asset Management
City Planning
Law Enforcement
Oil and Gas
What our clients are saying:
"Graham Associates engaged Lone Star earlier this year for a project in Krum Texas to fly LiDAR topo. The results for Graham was a significant savings of time and resources for us on the project."
Jeff Williams, P.E.
"Highly recommend Drew and his company. They are very professional, competitively priced, and prompt. The product is one of the best I have seen. We will definitely use alone Star Drone again for future projects. Great experience!"
Darwin Allen
"Lone Star Drone was quick to respond to my request for service. The equipment was top-notch and the operator was knowledgeable and professional. I highly recommend Lone Star Drone."
Mike Wilson
What is LiDAR
LiDAR in a nutshell
Light Detection and Ranging is a technology that uses lasers to create a map of a broad area.
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LiDAR uses lasers to detect the range from an emitter to objects in space by using either a single laser or an array of lasers coupled with a real-time position logging system to build a model of buildings, object, land, and anything else that can bounce the laser beam back to the sensor.
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Used in many fields including engineering, survey work, and aviation, LiDAR can give extremely accurate results to the operator that are then compared against kinematic data (corrected GPS location) and fed into a computer. The computer builds three-dimensional models of the scanned areas in near real-time.
RTK/PPK Location Correction
Setup for a LiDAR mission is the most crucial part to ensuring that the data is worth having. Given only standard GPS data, a LiDAR mission can skew the dataset dramatically. The fact is, GPS in a standard consumer drone has a variance of three or more feet. If the weather is not absolutely perfect the GPS position even can be off by as much as 30 feet. What does that mean for the LiDAR data? It means that the GPS-based model that the software will try to render will be nowhere near a proper representation of the actual object or land you are trying to capture. RTK or PPK will amplify the location precision to sub-millimeter accuracy, ensuring that your data will work for you to the highest potential.
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The advantage of choosing LiDAR over traditional forms of mapping and survey work is that it can be used to quickly achieve accurate results over very large areas. What would have taken months to map through the use of ground crews can now be done in a day. Moreover, the data has ground sample points numbering in the millions, versus only dozens of ground points that have to be interpreted by a surveyor by hand. LiDAR has the potential to get the job done faster and more accurately than traditional survey work.
Experience and attention to detail are essential to a successful LiDAR scan. LiDAR is only as good as the operator who sets it up. It costs tens of thousands of dollars for an entry level sensor and hundreds of thousands for an engineering grade sensor. There are cheaper sensors on the market, but the results they produce cannot be used for anything more than crude planning. LS Drone combines cutting edge technology and professional expertise to provide a full-service LiDAR experience that saves you both time and money.
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History of LiDAR
1960
1961
July - August, 1971
The first laser was built in 1960 by Theodore H. Maiman at Hughes Research Laboratories
Malcom Stitch, working for the Hughes Aircraft Company developed the COLiDAR system as the first Laser Range Finder.
The Astronauts of Apollo 15 used a simple version of LiDAR to map the surface of the moon.
LiDAR was developed in 1961 as a means to track satellites. Originally called COLiDAR (coherent light detecting and ranging), it used a system of timing and calculation to determine the distance from the emitter to an object and is the fundamental basis for all laser range finders today. In 1971, LiDAR went 'out of this world' when NASA used LiDAR to help map the surface of the moon.
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1971, Apollo 15 LiDAR array
As lasers have advanced, so have the technology and accuracy of laser ranging. LiDAR also has become incredibly advanced. LiDAR emitters used to be a single laser reflected against an oscillating mirror. Like a bar code scanner, the laser would move back and forth, ranging a single line of points at a time. LiDAR sensors now can be made up of many lasers set in an array. This increases the sampling rate that the scanner can acquire.
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Today, LiDAR scanners are used for a multitude of applications. Autonomous vehicles use LiDAR to build a virtual world to calculate navigation and countermeasures. Aircraft can use LiDAR to determine ground conditions. Drones use LiDAR to create complex topographic maps with unprecedented accuracy. In the past, a ground survey team would spend weeks or months building labor intensive maps using ground points and averaging. The head surveyor would take the data points collected and build the model through educated decisions. As accurate as this process was, between the ground sample points, the elevation was left mostly to the interpretation of the surveyor or cartographer.
Drones in the modern age can create maps in near real-time. These topographic scans are not just a map, but a model that can be used to make complex calculations on earth volume, vegetation density, and so much more. Prior to LiDAR model maps, the maps would have to be manually created on a computer, furthering the potential for data error. LiDAR, once properly post-processed, takes error out of the equation.
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