New scientific benchmark dataset available: multi-platform photogrammetry

Airborne high resolution oblique imagery systems and RPAS/UAVs are very promising technologies that will keep on influencing the development of geomatics in the future years closing the gap between terrestrial and classical aerial acquisitions. Although the interest for the registration and integration of aerial and terrestrial data is constantly increasing, only limited work has been truly performed on this topic. Several investigations still need to be undertaken concerning algorithms' ability for automatic co-registration, accurate point cloud generation and feature extraction from multi-platform image data. In current research especially the question on how large changes of perspective and scale differences need to be tackled in image orientation and (dense) image matching is not approached systematically. One of the biggest obstacles, however, is the non-availability of reliable and free datasets to test and compare new algorithms and procedures.

The Scientific Initiative "ISPRS benchmark for multi-platform photogrammetry", run in collaboration with EuroSDR, aims at collecting and sharing state-of-the-art multi-sensor data (oblique airborne, UAV-based and terrestrial images) over an urban area, with the overall goal to identify the current status of research and to stimulate further work.

As of now the first part of the data is released: the dense image matching benchmark.

Two different typologies of data are available for participants:
1) Nadir and oblique aerial images (professional medium format camera images)
2) Combined block (UAV and terrestrial images) (consumer grade cameras)

By providing image calibration and orientation information we make sure that all participants produce their point clouds in the same coordinate frame, so that results can be compared easily.

Please visit our homepage which contains further details and the download information. http://www2.isprs.org/commissions/comm1/icwg15b/benchmark_main.html

Francesco Nex (FBK Trento) and Markus Gerke (University of Twente/ITC Enschede)