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THE USE OF UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES (UAVS) FOR REMOTE SENSING AND 
MAPPING 
J. Everaerts 
Remote Sensing and Earth Observation Processes Unit, Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO), 
Boeretang 200, BE-2400 Mol, Belgium -jurgen.everaerts@vito.be 
Inter-Commission WG I/V 
KEY WORDS: Platforms, Technology, Multisensor, Research, Unmanned 
ABSTRACT: 
The ISPRS congress in Istanbul has adopted a resolution that called for the study of the use of Eaves in remote sensing and 
mapping. In the past four years, a wide range of these platforms has been used in the civil and scientific world, equipped with a 
multitude of instruments, to deliver data in w variety of applications. It is an area of remote sensing that is very active, but not yet 
near to consolidation. This paper does not attempt to make comprehensive lists of platforms, instruments or applications. Rather, it 
tries to give the reader a sample of what is possible today and in the future. 
UAVs as remote sensing platforms have given many research groups the opportunity to acquire data at sufficiently low cost to 
justify the use of remote sensing in the first place. These platforms may therefore become the catalyst for many new users and uses 
of remote sensing, and will become so even more when airspace regulations have been adapted to accept them as regular aircraft. 
1. INTRODUCTION 
At the past ISPRS congress in Istanbul, Resolution 1.1 was 
passed, saying: 
“The Congress: 
Noting 
• that unpiloted aerial vehicles (UAVs) provide a new, 
controllable platform for remote data acquisition; 
• that manoeuvrability of UAVs permits remote data 
acquisition in environments dangerous to human life 
• and/or inaccessible to direct examination (e.g. forest 
fires, volcanoes, toxic spills, transportation disasters, 
• etc.); 
• that UAVs provide potential for acquiring remote 
data more rapidly and at lower cost than from piloted 
aerial vehicles. 
Recognizing 
• the range of potential applications not readily 
possible using piloted vehicles over small geographic 
or site specific 
• areas on a real-time basis at affordable costs (e.g., 
incident analysis); 
• that new technologies will be required to design and 
develop miniature platforms and sensors. 
Recommends that 
• an inventory of current and technologically feasible 
miniature sensors be undertaken; 
• an inventory of current and possible future civil 
applications be catalogued and documented as to 
• appropriateness, levels of readiness, and comparative 
cost; 
• the performance of the various UAVs and their 
onboard sensors for various applications be 
investigated; 
• a report of the above findings be produced by ISPRS 
for the global community.” 
In what follows, an overview is provided of projects 
undertaken in the past 4 years using UAV platforms. It does 
not address the inventories mentioned in the recommendations, 
however. The Inter-Commission Working Group I/V 
“Autonomous Navigation” has monitored the progress in this 
area of research, and has concluded that it is not yet 
consolidated to a sufficient extent to make inventories useful. 
As a consequence, most of the issues raised will be addressed 
by citing examples, rather than lists. 
For remote sensing or mapping, military systems cannot be 
used, in general. Therefore, these systems are not considered in 
any further. 
2. UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE SYSTEMS 
2.1 Layout of a UAV system 
A UAV is the prominent part of a whole system that is 
necessary to fly the aircraft. Even though there is no pilot 
physically present in the aircraft, this doesn’t mean that the it 
flies by itself autonomously. In many cases, the crew 
responsible for a UAV is larger than that of a conventional 
aircraft. 
The aircraft is controlled from the ground (the Ground Control 
Station or GCS), so it needs reliable communication links to 
and from the aircraft, but also to the local Air Traffic Control 
(ATC) authorities if required (usually when flying higher than 
150-200 m above the ground). The GCS provides a working 
space for a pilot, navigator, instrument operator and usually a 
mission commander. 
The data received by the GCS from the instruments is either 
processed on-site or forwarded to a processing centre. This can 
be done using standard telecommunication means. 
Of course, when operating low-cost systems, most of the GCS 
functions can be combined in the handheld remote controls that