When using flight support, you always have control over the data you are delivering. With the help of flight support, you obtain accurate scale and correct geographic positioning for the data you generate. In SkyMap's cloud processing tool, we have built a very user-friendly interface to make this process easier for you.

If you don't use flight support, you won't know how inaccurate the data you generate is, and you can never compensate for these errors. You also can't provide a proper quality control of what you are delivering or using. Therefore, we recommend always using flight support that has been measured with RTK GNSS or a total station.

Considerations

Colors against background: White works well on most backgrounds. It's important to consider the contrast against the background on which you are marking. Clear markings and good placements make the workflow faster during post-processing.

Setting ground control points: When setting ground control points, always have at least 5, as shown in the image below. For example, when surveying a road (a elongated object), it's important to place markers on both sides of the road with a maximum distance of 50 meters between points for photogrammetry to handle issues like undulation and skewness effectively.

Placement of flight support: When setting up flight support, it's important that the markers are positioned outside or on the outer edge of the area to be surveyed. This allows you to have control over any deviations that may occur during post-processing. Imagine drawing lines between all flight supports; the area to be surveyed should be inside the lines everywhere. With an RTK drone, this is not as critical unless you intend to use the points to verify your data afterward. However, we still recommend using flight support when using RTK or PPK drones as it provides better control over the final data.

Always number flight supports: Numbering the flight supports makes it easier for post-processing.

Place flight supports at the highest and lowest points: This makes it easier for photogrammetric algorithms to calculate the correct height differences in the finished model.

Placement of GCP points when measuring elongated objects: When measuring elongated objects like roads, it's important to place markers on both sides of the road with a maximum distance of about 50 meters between points to ensure effective photogrammetry. See the example image below:
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File Structure

Supported file types for uploading are .txt and .csv.

The delimiters that can be used in the file are comma, tab, and semicolon.

FAQ

Is spray paint better than tiles laid out?