UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY FOR LOW COST

LANDSLIDE MAPPING
Khairul Nizam Tahar *1, Anuar Ahmad #2 & Wan Abdul Aziz Wan Mohd Akib #2
*1

Department of Surveying Science & Geomatics,

Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying
Universiti Teknologi MARA
40450 Shah Alam, Selangor, MALAYSIA
#2

Faculty of Geoinformation & Real Estate

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
81310 Johor Bahru, Johor, MALAYSIA

email: 1nizamtahar@gmail.com 2anuarahmad@utm.my; 2wanaziz@utm.my

Abstract
Landslide tragedy always occurred at the slope area or unstable ground. It is because of the
changes of ground movement speed at shot period. Landslide can be affected by surrounding
development for example cutting slope, highway construction or housing development. The
development in an area has shifted a natural movement of the ground in the area. There are
many factors that caused landslide. One of the main factor of landslide is underground water
that flow at the unstable ground. Many research have been carried out to overcome this problem
such as prediction of landslide, mapping of landslide risk area and in situ measurement at the
prone area of landslide. Recently, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology is becoming
more useful to solve problem in many applications. The aim of this study is to generate three
dimensional model using UAV images for landslide mapping. This study uses UAV technology
for mapping area of interest. There are two types of UAV units that can be used for mapping
purpose namely fixed-wing and rotor-wing. Rotary-wing UAV needs more time to stable before it
can captured images on the ground. There are many kinds of rotary wing UAV that have been
produced according to its specific application or needs. Unlike rotary-wing UAV, the fixed-wing
UAVs are more stable and able to capture image easily. It allows remote control UAV to be
practiced in any environment and urban mapping. UAV is capable to capture aerial images from
certain flying height. The concept of UAV is the same as manned aerial vehicle but it needs a
professional person to operate the UAV from the ground. In this study, the UAV images were
processed using photogrammetry technique. Therefore, controls points were established before
capturing digital images using UAV. The raw images were processed using image processing
software in order to create digital elevation of the study area. The result of digital elevation
model was used to create three dimensional model of a simulated landslide area. This study
investigates contour line behavior of landslide area and performs calculation of area and
volume at the landslide area. Orthophoto of the simulated landslide area was successfully
produced after executing photogrammetric processes. The process includes the basic concept
such as establishing ground control point and carried out certain orientations. Finally, the three
dimensional models were used to automatically calculate volume of landslide area, calculate the
direction and magnitude of landslide, calculate area of landslide and represent 3D model of

landslide area such as digital terrain model (DTM) using appropriate software. Based on the
results of this study, it is useful for are many applications such as urban planning, data
infrastructure of landslide risk area, forestry mapping, river surveillance and flood surveillance.
UAV technology can be used in mapping applications but it needs some modification from
certain aspect in order to fulfill requirement of mapping. The procedures involved in this study
can be used by public work department for the purpose of monitoring landslide area with low
cost budget, less manpower and fast results could be obtained.
Keywords: Landslide, UAV, Photogrammetry, Orthophoto, DTM, 3D model
1 INTRODUCTION
Photogrammetry is the art, science and technology which involve several processes of physical
object or certain areas in order to acquire information about feature on the earth surface (Wolf &
Dewitt, 2004). Data acquisition for aerial photogrammetry covers kites, gliders, balloon, airship,
rotary and fixed wing UAV with the various flight modes such as manual, semi-automated or
fully-automated. The methods of data acquisition depend on project budget, time of project and
level of accuracy that is required in the project. The first UAV was developed by US military for
surveillance purpose. Military used UAV in surveillance because it is small, quite and low risk at
the enemy areas. Most of UAV has been attached with camera in order to captured images or
video recording at the certain location (Lin, 2008). Tahar and Ahmad (2011) successfully used a
rotary wing UAV and aerial photogrammetric technique for mapping simulated model to
generate DTM and orthophoto. Nowadays, the idea of UAV has been widely used by civilian for
hobby purposes. There are many kind of UAV that are available in market. According to
unmanned vehicle systems international association, UAV can be categorized into 15 classes
based on different mass, range, flight altitude and endurance of the UAV itself.
Table 1: UAV categories (UVSIA, 2010)

Micro ()
Mini
Mini
CR
Close Range
SR
Short Range
MR
Medium Range
MRE
MR Endurance
LADP
Low Alt. Deep Penetration
LALE
Low Alt. Long Endurance
MALE
Medium Alt. Long Endur.
HALE
High Alt. Long Endur.
Strato
Stratospheric
EXO
Exo-stratospheric
UCAV
Unmanned combat
LET
Lethal
DEC
Decoys
*TBD= To Be Dertermined

Mass
< 5 kg
< 25/30/150*
25-150
50-250
150-500
500-1500
250-2500
15-25
1000-1500
2500-5000
>2500
TBD
>1000
TBD
150-500

Range
< 10 km
< 10
10-30
30 - 70
70 - 200
> 500
> 250
> 500
> 500
> 2000
> 2000
TBD
>+/- 1500
300
0 - 500

Flight Alt.
250 m
150/250/300*
3.000
3.000
5.000
8.000
50 9.000
3.000
5/8.000
20.000
>20.000
>30.500
12.000
4.000
50 5.000

Endurance
1 hour
<2
2-4
3-6
6 - 10
10 - 18
0,5 - 1
> 24
24 - 48
24 - 48
> 48
TBD
+/- 2
3-4
<4

Table 1 shows categories of unmanned aerial vehicle that are available all over the world. These
categories have been divided into a few types of UAV according to its mass, range, flight altitude
and time of endurance. UAV data collection is possible under cloudless condition and the image
quality is much better than satellite images which are located a hundred thousand kilometers
from earth surface. With this advantage, unmanned aerial vehicle has been focus in the mapping
research and various applications such as environmental, agricultural, monitoring hazardous area
and exactra. However it needs a professional pilot to operate the UAV and solve technical
problem on UAV during flight operation (Sidek and Ahmad, 2008). In this study, Nikon Coolpix
L4 has been used in acquiring simulation model images. Nikon Coolpix digital camera has 3x
optical zoom lens and 2.0 LCD screen. Nikon Coolpix L4 captures spectacular images at
resolutions up to 2272 x 1704 or about four Megapixels. Figure 1 shows Nikon Coolpix L4
digital camera. In this study, Micro UAV also known as Hexacopter has been used in acquiring
images for simulation model. Hexacopter has 6 blades where 3 blades rotate clockwise direction
and 3 blades rotate counter-clockwise. Nikon Coolpix camera has been attached at the bottom of
Hexacopter. Hexacopter has been assembled with complete set gadget such as GPS on board,
pressure board, speed board, gyro and mainboard (Figure 2).

Figure 1: Nikon Coolpix L4

Figure 2: Hexacopter

Hexacopter is more stable and safe for outdoor activity especially in urban area. It is capable to
capture images from certain altitude. Transmitter of hexacopter can received signal via radio
control at 5 kilometer radius. Table 2 shows specification of Hexacopter UAV.
Table 2: Hexacopter specification (RCHeli, 2008)
Weight
Rotor
Endurance
Payload
GPS on board
Special function
Stabilizer
Capture data
Flight control
Camera stand

1.2kg
6 rotor
Up to 36 minutes
1kg
Yes
Automatically return to home location (1st point)
Inbuilt stabilizer to deal with wind correction
Using software to reached waypoints
Manual and autonomous
Flexible camera holder

METHODOLOGY

In this study, the methodology is divided into five sections which include preliminary study, field
work, data processing, results and analysis. Preliminary study covered literature review and
determination of scope and objective. Field work section is about constructing simulation model
built from sand and cement (dimension 1 x 3 meter), flight planning and establishment of ground
control points. There are two platform used in this study; fixed and mobile platform. Therefore,
data processing has been divided into two sections that include interior orientation, exterior
orientation and block triangulation for mobile and fixed platform. Results of this study are based
on generated digital terrain model and orthophoto. In analysis section, the differences between
results from fixed and mobile platform are compared.
Figure 3 depicts the flowchart of the research methodology for this study. Before
photogrammetry work is carried out, flight planning is the most important task that need be
considered which contributes to the quality of data acquisition. Flight planning involves
calculation of study area, number of strips required, pixel size, photo scale, flying height and
percentage of end lap and side lap. In general, aerial photograph should be overlapped at least
60% percent and side at least 30%. This requirement need to be fulfilled to make sure quality
phtogrammetry results could be obtained. The calculation of percent end lap involve certain
parameter such as image resolution, scale, flying height and focal length of digital camera.
Formula to calculate percent end lap is shown in equation (1).

(1)
where,
C = dimension on the ground or ground coverage; E = distance between exposure station
From equation (1), dimension on the ground must be defined before calculating percent end lap,
ground dimension can be derived by equation (2).
(2)
From equation (2), ground dimension could be determined using equation (3).
(3)
where,
x = number of pixel for object
X= length of object
f = focal length
H=flying height
SI = size of images
S = scale of photograph
The value of ground dimension could be derived from equation (3) and percent end lap could be
derived using equation (1).

Literature Review
Determine Scope and
Objective

Simulation Model

Flight Planning

Planning Aerial
Photograph
End lap 60%

Planning ground control

Photo scale

Flying height

Established 33

Acquire Digital
Images
Fixed platform

Mobile platform

Interior orientation

Interior orientation
Preliminary
Study

Exterior orientation

Exterior orientation

Block triangulation

UAV Block
Triangulation

Field Work

DSM, Orthophoto,
3D models

DSM, Orthophoto,
3D models

Analysis

Data
Processing
Result

Analysis

Figure 3: Flowchart of the Research Methodology

DATA PROCESSING

After data acquisition have been complete using fixed platform and mobile platform. All the
images were processed using photogrammetric software known as Erdas Imagine. The

processing involved interior orientation which requires input information such as camera focal
length and pixel size, exterior orientation involved the registration of ground control point,
manual tie points and auto generation of tie points. Each pair of photograph has 60% overlapped
and 11 photographs were processed for the whole simulation model. The footprint of fixed
platform and mobile platform are shown in Figure 4 and 5 respectively. In fixed platform image
processing, there were 414 points which cover 33 ground control points has been registered as a
full control (XYZ) and 381 tie points. In mobile platform image processing, there were 386
points which cover 33 ground points and 353 tie points. The distribution of ground control points
and tie points for both platforms can be view in Figure 4 and 5. During image processing, the
accuracy is maintained by checking the value root mean square error (RMSE). The value of
RMSE must be less than 1.0 in order to obtain good result.

Figure 4: Footprint (Fixed Platform)

Figure 5: Footprint (Mobile Platform)

4 RESULTS
In this study, there two main results are produced i.e DTM and orthophoto. The results of DTM
for fixed and mobile platform are shown in Figure 6 and 7 respectively.

Figure 6: Digital Elevation Model (Fixed Platform)

Figure 7: Digital Elevation Model (Mobile Platform)

The DTMs were produced using Erdas Imagine software and it is in raster form. The DTMs were
produced after performing aerial triangulation using ground control points and tie points. After
performing DTM, the orthophoto is generated based on the DTM. Individual orthophoto for each
individual model was produced and lasted they were mosaiced using mosaic operation. Figure 8
and 9 showed orthphotos for simulation model using fixed and mobile platform respectively.

Figure 8: Orthophoto (Fixed Platform)

Figure 9: Orthophoto (Mobile Platform)

Orthophoto product is free from any distortion and represent the whole simulation model.
Orthophoto is the most important phase in photogrammetry work since it reflects the accuracy of
final product.
5

ANALYSIS

The objective of this study is to investigate the capabilities of consumer digital camera in volume
determination. In this study, some portion of simulated model has been excavated in representing
landslide simulation. The portion of landslide incident has been cropped from the original DTM
for analysis. Therefore, DTM before and after landslide simulation has been used as a primary
data for volume calculation in this study. The contour lines were generated for both situations for
the purpose to determine the flow of landslide behavior. Note that the shape of the contour lines
changed after landslide occurred (Figure 10). Also this figure shows contour lines are
superimposed with DEM at the landslide region.
Figure 10 shows the direction of contour lines before landslide and after landslide happen. As a
result, contour lines will follow a direction of landslide direction. This study represent TIN
model for visualizing the three dimensional model of the simulated landslide. Figure 11 shows
the 3D visualization before landslide and after landslide.

Before

After

Figure 10: Contour line overlapping with DTM

Figure 11: Superimposition between TIN and contour lines before and after landslide

The TIN models were produced using ArcGIS 9.3 software. Figure 11 represents the contour line
behavior at excavated area which is difference before landslide incident. In general, the soil loss
can be calculated by subtracting DTM before landslide and after landslide. Surface volume tools
are available in ArcGIS 9.3 to calculate surface volume automatically. As a result the volume of
soil loss has been calculated by subtracting two different surface volumes before and after
landslide that were generated from both DTMs respectively. The volume of soil loss of landslide
is 0.002043 meter. In order to prove this result close to the actual value, the results were
compared using conventional method. The real soil loss has been calculated in cylinder cube
with diameter of 23cm and height 5cm. So the volume calculation in cylinder cube is
2077.38cm or 0.002077 meter. The difference of volume between these two methods is
0.000034 meter and can be considered as acceptable since the difference is too small.
The analysis section also focused on RMSE, visualization analysis on DTM and orthophoto
from different platform. Several checkpoints have been established during this study which is
used to check the accuracy of DTM. Figure 12 shows the graph of root mean square error
(RMSE) versus ground control X, Y and Z.

Figure 12: Triangulation summary

From Figure 12, it can be seen that RMSE for planimetry ground control (XY) are almost the
same but it obviously shows that the different for height ground control (Z) for mobile and fixed
platform. The different on height ground control (Z) might be effected from automated tie points
that are used in the image matching technique. The analysis of estimation time and cost are
shown in Table 3. This estimation only reflects small simulation model of 1 x 3 meter.
Table 3: Time and Cost Estimation for Simulation Work

Method
Project Planning
(reconnaissance, calculation
flight planning, establish
station traverse, establish
ground control point)
Fieldwork

Processing

Conventional Method
Tacheometry methods
1.5 Hours

Fixed Platform
Static Platform
2 hours

Mobile Platform
UAV platform
2 hours

Traversing 2 hours
Spot Height 2 hours

Traversing 2 hours
Static Platform Setup
-30 minute
Acquire images 15
minute
Image Processing
until DEM 2 hours

Traversing 2 hours
UAV setup 20 minute
Flight - 10 minute

2 person

1 professional pilot + 1
person
6 hr 30 minute

Labor

Export ASCII file to

point data 5 minute
Generate DEM 1 Hour
3 person

Total (Hours)

6 hr 35 minute

6 hr 45 minute

Image Processing until DEM

2 hours

From Table 3, it can be concluded that conventional method has disadvantage in project planning
and fieldwork stage but less time is required on data processing. Mobile platform has advantage
in project planning and fieldwork but need more time in image processing. This estimation is
only valid for simulation model. However for large area, conventional method will take a long
time to establish ground control point but the UAV only take 1 or 2 hours to complete data
acquisition. In conclusion, UAV platform is very helpful and economical for large scale
mapping.

CONCLUSION & FUTURE WORK

This study has been carried out to prove that mobile platform using UAV could provide the same
result of DTM and orthophoto. The results have been analyzed using root mean square error
(RMSE). With the new technology, UAV could also solve many problems for various
applications especially for small area. It has been proved that UAV platform is very suitable for
the project that has limited budget and less time. This technology can be adopted in
photogrammetry work which is required to update information within a short time. This study
also proves that UAV can be applied for low cost landslide mapping and determination of
volume loss in landslide incident. This technology could be used by any agency or ministry that
is related with environmental studies. For future work, this research will proceed with mapping
larger area using the fixed wing and rotary wing UAV.
7

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Faculty of Architecture, Planning and Surveying Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) and
Faculty of Geoinformation & Real Estate, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) are greatly
acknowledged.
8

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