Ch 55. GNSS Applications in Surveying and Mobile Mapping

Overview

The introduction of GNSS technology to the civilian community in 1980 revolutionized the surveying industry, facilitated the delivery of highly accurate and reliable positioning information in shorter periods of time, and provided significant economic and social benefits.

The precise positioning capability of the first generations of GNSS systems, the development and advancement of alternative geospatial data acquisition instruments (i.e. optical imaging systems such as cameras – Chapter 50 – and laser scanning systems – Chapter 49), and most importantly the need for rapid acquisition of large‐scale geospatial data also inspired the development of Mobile Mapping Systems .

In this chapter, we will first study the positioning requirements of surveying and mobile mapping and the role of GNSS as an alternative for providing timely accurate positioning information. Furthermore, we will review some major applications of GNSS across the surveying and mobile mapping sectors. Finally, we will present emerging developments in the GNSS system and mapping industry which positively impact the performance of surveying and mobile mapping applications.