sis and AN INTEGRATED SYSTEM OF DIGITAL MONOPLOTTING AND DTM MODELLING 
Landsat FOR FORESTRY APPLICATIONS 
Remote 
G. Aumann and K. Eder 
Chair for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Technical University Munich 
Arcisstr. 21, D-80290 München, Germany 
Tel.: + 49 89 2892 2677, Fax : + 49 89 2809573, EMail: konni@ photo.verm.tu-muenchen.de 
amental 
ications, 
KEY WORS : Forestry, GIS, DTM, Digital , Orthoimage 
Abstract 
The Chair for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing of the Technical University Munich has been involved in a project 
for the development of an operational digital monoplotting system for forestry applications. The project was funded 
by the ‘Bavarian State Institute of Forestry’ (LWF). 
The paper presents the design and realisation of the developed system. Its efficiency and applicability is illustrated 
by various examples. Special emphasis is put on the utilization of a high quality DTM for the generation of the 
orthoimage as well as for the on-line generation and use of DTM products during monoplotting. For revision of 
forestrial maps the data are extracted from the GIS (SICAD) and transferred into the monoplotting system by 
conversion modules. In the last part of the paper the potential of the system is discussed. A practical test under 
productive conditions has been carried out, comparing quality, time consumption and other relevant items with 
traditional procedures in forestrial mapping. The paper concludes with an overall evaluation of the system and gives 
some ideas on how it may be used in future. 
1. INTRODUCTION account, that the operator is a specialist in forestrial 
image interpretation but not a photogrammetrist. For 
this reason a system was designed which integrates ope- 
rational software packages in order to obtain a high 
operational standard of the complete system (cf. Fig. 1). 
A comfortable user shell and smooth data flow are 
indispensable. 
Remote sensing data gained from aerial images and 
increasingly from digital sensors are an important source 
of information for forest planing, monitoring and re- 
search. The establishment of information systems for 
forestry applications demands the adaptation of evalua- 
tion techniques as well as the integration of digital sy- 
stems for data acquisition and management. The aim is High quafity 
that the interpretation results obtained e.g. from aerial DTM 
images are directly imported into the GIS avoiding time 
consuming and error prone intermediate steps. 
" Digital monoplotting supplies an efficient procedure to Control points 
  
  
  
  
    
    
  
   
       
     
  
  
  
  
  
obtain interpretation results digitally in good geometric M 
quality and allows the combination with any other infor- (HIFI) 
mation in vector or raster format. By this means the ZS 
forest specialist is able to use additional relevant thema- Digital 4 Te 
hr, : : : M4 Orthoimage 4 acquisition 
tic information during the evaluation process. 
             
  
VA (PHODIS-OP) J PHOCUS-M) J 
  
  
    
2. CONCEPTUAL DESIGN AND SYSTEM 
COMPONENTS 
  
Digital monoplotting is the acquisition of threedimen- 
sional information from a single (mono) digital image 
with the support of the image orientation and a digital 
elevation model (DTM). 
To meet the requirements for the development of a 
System for forestry applications, one has to take into 
Figure 1 : The structure of the integrated system 
221 
International Archives of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Vol. XXXI, Part B7. Vienna 1996