Terrain Characterization from Ground-Based LADAR
Abstract
Test runs of Army Research Laboratory's (ARL) autonomous vehicle (Experimental Unmanned Vehicle, XUV) were followed by the acquisition of high resolution scans of selected regions of the test course. These scans were used to i) determine terrain features (e.g., heavy vegetation, ditches, etc.) which may hamper the autonomous navigation of the XUV and ii) develop the ability to quantify terrain features such as vegetation or roughness. Those tasks require determination of "ground" or "bare earth," which is a major issue of ongoing research into terrain characterization. Point clouds collected by ground-based LADAR (laser distance and ranging) pose a particular challenge because they are extremely dense in close proximity to the instrument and progressively sparse at larger distances. This work focuses on the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) procedures for ground determination and the development of gauges for vegetation coverage and slope variability.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 2003
- Accession Number
- ADA515327
Entities
People
- Christoph Witzgall
- David E. Gilsinn
- Geraldine S. Cheok
Organizations
- National Institute of Standards and Technology