3D modelling of industrial piping systems using digital photogrammetry and laser scanning

Industrial metrology is one of the fastest growing areas in advanced technologies, such as electronics and optics, computation speed, and it has been increased in recent years. There are several tools used in industrial metrology, such as total stations, digital photogrammetry, and laser scanning. Close range digital photogrammetry has been implemented for an industrial piping system in terms of installation, inspection, and replacement. Laser scanning is also used for industrial measurements to generate 3D coordinates points. In order to develop a 3D modelling strategy, this thesis focuses on the development, selection and design of photogrammetric procedures and project specific targets. This thesis also explores image-acquiring sensors such as digital cameras and laser scanners in terms of their capabilities and advantages. Based on experimental setup accuracy, measurements of piping systems are compared for applications of two different sensors. Effects of different surface materials are examined in laser scanning applications and several different types of materials are used for acquiring point clouds data. Measurement of pipes' diameters and residual analyses are conducted with different surface materials, which are used for industrial pipes. Significant improvement in laser scanning data acquisition is examined in terms of data quality both quantitatively and qualitatively during the residual analyses.