Lidar Fact and Fiction

摘要

Most surveyors know something about aerial lidar, but because many are new to this tech-tech area, misconceptions abound. This will give you some perspective. While it may seem new, lidar (light detection and ranging) has actually been around for over 30 years now. The technology works similarly to radar (radio detection and ranging), but transmits and receives light from lasers rather than radio waves from radio signals. Its use goes all the way back to the 1970s with the introduction of systems by NASA. But through the 1970s and 80s and the first half of the 90s, the technology was far too cumbersome and temperamental to be deployed commercially. Its integrators worked hard to reduce weight and size, increase accuracy, and increase reliability.