From Mayan city to our port: what do you use LiDAR scans for?

LiDAR does with light waves what radar does with radio waves. LiDAR scanners utilise invisible laser beams for environmental scanning. They create a point cloud of millions of densely packed points. Specialised software converts that point cloud into a 3D model. That 3D model has numerous applications; for instance, a modeller can transform it into a technical model. 

Those laser beams penetrate the leaves of trees, for example. That's the reason scientists used LiDAR technology to scan vast areas of the Mexican jungle. By analysing those scans, an American student unearthed an overgrown Mayan city where the population is estimated to have been as high as 50,000. The city, the second largest Mayan city ever found, was named Valeriana. 

"Our inspection team inspects the bridge at the same time as we scan it. Afterwards, they can easily access the inspection report, photos, and model back at the office. For example, they can flag defects and schedule maintenance based on the model, all without needing to visit the bridge," says Peter. The scans thus provide faster processing, more information about the asset and the ability to share it with suppliers.

"While this technology isn't new, AI is now making it much smarter," Peter points out. "Using AI, the point cloud is grouped into categories like buildings, roads, and trees." "Thanks to that innovation, you can easily filter through the millions of points to isolate just the elements you want to turn into a model."