XIII 
photogrammetric survey of the internal bearing structures of the 
Dome of S. Maria del Fiore in Florence and the static control of 
Palazzo della Ragione in Padua were presented. The 
contributions showed that digital photogrammetry offers good 
methods for architectural surveying. 
In the next four days of the meeting, other technical sessions 
have followed. The great number of presented papers could not 
be reported in details. Some general remarks on presentations 
and some highlights will be given therefore. However all the 
invited, presented poster and papers will be published in the 
I APRS. 
The participants of the meeting learned of the increasing use of 
WEB in these disciplines. Data transfer, GIS applications, 3D 
models, etc. can be handled and spread out via Internet. 
Applications of high interest were done on the cultural heritage 
architecture. A new automatic, soft classification method for 
estimation of the blanket of snow, by remote sensing, and 
mapping of hydro - thermal alteration, by the same techniques, 
were reported. 
Further on, some theoretical considerations on metrology and 
data processing were presented. A scientist, being the last Ph.D. 
student of Prof. Mariano Cunietti, went deeply into some 
concepts of epistemology and linguistics related to metrology 
(the problem of uncertainty was especially taken into account). 
An attempt to built up a synthesis, in the field of pattern 
recognition, showed some contributions, coming both form the 
linguistics and the AI. Regarding applications, a comparison 
between a classical geoid and its determination, via GPS, was 
presented. Moreover a software for georeferencing of digital 
images by using plane transformations (GeoPlanTran), 
developed by students, was also demonstrated, as a practical 
application of digital photogrammetry. 
Great achievement of different partners from research centers 
and from industry, working on the fully Italian mission of 
mapping from space, regarding satellite accelerometry - SAGE, 
was presented. There were a lot of organizational and 
professional problems, but the team whose pilot center was at 
the TU of Milan, under the leadership of Prof. F. Sansd, 
succeeded to finish the first part of the project, in only one year. 
More information are available on the WEB - site, via internet, 
http://ipmtfl4.topo.polimi.it/~sage. 
Furthermore a new extraterrestrial mapping, in the framework 
of the project - GAIA, was presented. The goal of the project is 
to upgrade the existing star catalogues, by providing a precision 
catalogue of one billion stars, using high resolution 
measurements with micro - arc second astrometry from space. 
The use of an automatic DEM generation in quarries, the 
establishment of a precise leveling network, for the monitoring 
of possible vertical movements in Pisa and in its surrounded 
area, and some surveying methodologies suitably applied in 
volcanic regions, like the Phlegrean district (near to Naples), 
are interesting topics, presented in the field of deformation 
monitoring. 
Prof. K. Kraus lectured a current topic, namely «Determination 
of terrain models in wooded areas with airborne laser scanner 
data». Airborne laser scanners for recording topographic data 
are ready to be used in various applications. He reported on 
experiences acquired during the pilot project, comparing 
photogrammetry with laser scanning from the user’s point of 
view. Laser scanning is the dynamic method of data acquisition, 
with laser rays from airborne, and is especially suitable for 
measurements, to obtain terrain models in wooded areas. It is 
necessary, to use GPS and INS during the laser scanning, in 
order to be able to define the position of ray origins. Thus the 
geoid undulations of the area are required. 
Laser scanning supplies data with a skew distribution of errors, 
because a portion of the supplied points is not on the terrain, 
but on the treetops. Thus the usual interpolation and filtering 
has to be adapted to this new data type. He reported on the 
implementation of this new method which bases on linear 
prediction algorithm and works iteratively, taking into account 
robust estimators. He concluded that laser scanner data provide 
DTM’s, in wooded areas, with an accuracy equivalent to 
photogrammetry DTM’s, in open areas, derived from wide- 
angle images of scale 1 : 7000. In flat terrain, the accuracy is + / 
- 25 cm. After further improvements in the data processing, an 
accuracy of + / - 10 cm can be achieved for laser DTM’s. With 
a special filtering and interpolation method, an automatic 
classification of the laser points, into terrain and vegetation 
points, is possible. 
The participants heard also of the use of GPS, GLONASS and 
other systems used for real - time positioning in Italy. A 
historical overview was given by Prof. G. Manzoni. Prof. F. 
Sanso added some comments on the current state in this field in 
Italy. Big powerful industrial firms are prepared to invest for 
establishing more permanent GPS stations in Italy. However 
not only money is needed, but also proper professional 
solutions must be considered as well. 
The two last technical sessions dealt with digital 
photogrammetry and it’s usage for camera calibration, 
restoration purposes, architectural photogrammetry, historical 
studies (an ancient perspective in Lecco has been analyzed and 
matched with a new survey). In this frame, biologists showed 
the first results, concerning a special type of image processing, 
of the participation in the gene functional mapping project. 
The business session was chaired by the ISPRS VI/3 Co - chair 
- person. Firstly a short overview of the working group 
activities was given by Chair - person. The working group has 
around 280 members, between participants and correspondent 
members, involving 46 countries (around the half of the ISPRS 
ordinary members). Consequentially one can say all the 
meetings (Padua (Italy), February 3-7, 1997; Bahia Blanca 
(Argentina), October 27-31, 1997 and Perugia (Italy), February, 
16-20, 1998) have been a full success. 
Successively it was pointed out that an official meeting was 
originally scheduled, in the first week of February, at the 
University of Cape Town (South Africa). This meeting in Italy 
(Parma) would represent a repetition, because the two places are 
far enough. Unfortunately, unpredictable and undesirable 
difficulties and troubles in Indonesia imposed a delay of one 
year, the ISPRS TC VI Mid Term Symposium.The ISPRS 
Council canceled the Meeting in Cape Town, because of an 
evident conflict of date. However the ISPRS WG VI/3 staff 
obtained a new official meeting to be held, in the second week 
of December 1999, in Cotonou (Benin, Africa).