Vol.:(0123456789)
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h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s12518-022-00442-2
ORIGINAL PAPER
Geome ic accu acy in es iga ions o  e es ial lase scanne sys ems
in helabo a o y andin he ield
ThomasP.Ke s en1 · Ma enLinds aed 1
Recei ed: 7 No embe 2021 / Accep ed: 22 Ap il 2022
© The Au ho (s) 2022
Abs ac
This pape summa izes ecen esea ch in o cu en e es ial lase scanne s unde aken by he Ha enCi y Uni e si y Ham-
bu g and gi es an assessmen o he geode ic accu acy o he la es gene a ion o scanne s. Th ee sepa a e independen es
me hods a e p esen ed o in es iga e he geome ic accu acy o e es ial lase scanne s unde labo a o y condi ions: (a)
dis ance measu emen accu acy o b/w a ge s and sphe es on he 20-m compa a o ack, (b) compa ison o spa ial dis ances
in he 3D es ield on b/w a ge s, and (c) in es iga ion o he la ness de ia ion ollowing he guideline VDI/VDE 2634
(VDI/VDE 2012) on a la s one slab. The ollowing lase scanne s we e es ed in he lab: Leica BLK360 (2017), Leica
RTC360 (2019), Z+F IMAGER 5016 (2019, 2020), Z+F IMAGER 5010 (2020), and Fa o Focus3D X330 (2020). The e e -
ence measu emen s we e ealised wi h he Leica Absolu e T acke AT960 (2017, 2020) and wi h he Leica TS60 o al s a ion
(2019). The esul s o he geome ic accu acy es s in he labo a o y show e y small de ia ions in he ange o 1–2 mm o
mos o he scanne s, hus co esponding o he manu ac u e ’s speci ica ions. In addi ion, i e lase scanne s we e es ed
in acco dance wi h ins uc ion shee 7-2014 o he Ge man Socie y o Geodesy, Geoin o ma ion and Land Managemen
(DVW) o s anda dised es ing o e es ial lase scanne s in he ou doo a ea o Ha enCi y Uni e si y Hambu g. Fo he
execu ion o he ield es p ocedu e, only he s anda d equipmen and so wa e o he espec i e manu ac u e s we e used.
The en i e ield es p ocedu e, including da a acquisi ion and e alua ion, was comple ed wi hin 4 o 5 h o each scanne .
As expec ed, no signi ican dis ance o angle de ia ions we e de ec ed in any o he measu emen sys ems, so ha he es ed
lase scanne s a e eady- o-use, aking in o accoun he measu emen olume eco ded.
Keywo ds 3D es ield· Field es p ocedu e· Fla ness measu emen e o · Spa ial dis ances· Te es ial lase scanning
In oduc ion
The use o e es ial lase scanne s (TLS) has been es ab-
lished in he e e yday wo k o geodesis s o mo e han 15
yea s. The ins umen s cu en ly a ailable on he ma ke now
belong o he ou h gene a ion o scanne s and hei p eci-
sion can sca cely be imp o ed. Ne e heless, he p ecision
speci ied by he manu ac u e should be checked om ime
o ime in o de o be able o gua an ee a co esponding
speci ica ion.
Ha enCi y Uni e si y Hambu g (HCU) has been in es-
iga ing e es ial lase scanning sys ems o mo e han 15
yea s; since 2016, a mo e accu a e es si e has been es ab-
lished a he new building o HCU Hambu g, which can
se e as a e e ence o he inc eased accu acy le el o he
new scanne s. A new 3D es ield and a 20-m compa a o
ack in he labo a o y a e used o s udy and es a ious
lase scanne s. Ins i u ions such as he Hambu g S a e O ice
o C iminal In es iga ion ha e hei e es ial lase scanne s
checked annually a HCU as pa o hei equi ed quali y
managemen sys em ce i ica ion. Besides HCU, o he uni-
e si ies also in es iga e lase scanning sys ems. Hols e al.
(2018) ha e compiled he di e se es scena ios o he a i-
ous Ge man uni e si ies.
In addi ion o he h ee in es iga ions in he labo a o y,
he ield es p ocedu e o he DVW was also ca ied ou in
2019 and 2020 in acco dance wi h ins uc ion shee No. 7
(Nei zel e al. 2014), which o igina es wi h he publica ion
o Go wald (2008). This p ocedu e has been published in i s
ex ension 2018 as ISO 17123-9, which now also conside s
* Thomas P. Ke s en
Thomas.Ke s[email p o ec ed]
1 Pho og amme y & Lase Scanning Lab, Ha enCi y
Uni e si y Hambu g, Henning-Vosche au-Pla z 1,
20457Hambu g, Ge many
/ Published online: 7 May 2022
Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
es p ocedu es o e es ial lase scanne s wi h his pa 9.
The esul s o he ield es p ocedu e o he i e examined
lase scanne s Z+F IMAGER 5016 ( h ee sys ems), Leica
RTC 360, and Fa o Focus3D X330 a e p esen ed in “The
ield es p ocedu e” sec ion. In he opinion o he au ho s,
he e a e only e y ea ly publica ions on he ield es p o-
cedu e (Go wald 2008; Feldmann e al. 2011) acco ding o
he DVW ins uc ion shee .
Rela ed wo k
Se e al au ho s ha e al eady epo ed on di e en
app oaches o in es iga ing e es ial lase scanning sys-
ems du ing he las wo decades. Ne e heless, s anda dised
es s and calib a ion me hods o lase scanning sys ems do
no ye exis o he use . Due o he huge a ie y o e es-
ial lase scanne s i is di icul o he use o ind compa-
able in o ma ion ega ding he po en ial and p ecision o
he lase scanning sys ems in he jungle o echnical speci-
ica ions and he e o e o alida e he echnical speci ica-
ions p o ided by he sys em manu ac u e s. I may hus be
di icul o use s o choose he igh scanne o a speci ic
applica ion, emphasising he impo ance o compa a i e
in es iga ions in o accu acy beha iou o e es ial lase
scanning sys ems.
Se e al g oups, p ima ily uni e si y-based, ha e ca -
ied ou geome ical in es iga ions in o lase scanning
sys ems in o de o de i e compa able in o ma ion abou
he po en ial o he lase scanne s and de elop p ac ical
es ing and calib a ion me hods. The i s pape abou e -
es ial lase scanne e alua ion was published by Boehle
e al. (2003). Subsequen au ho s such as Ingensand e al.
(2003), Johansson (2003), Schulz and Ingensand (2004),
Taube (2005), Heis e (2006), Nei zel (2006), Bü ne and
S aige (2007), Wehmann e al. (2007), Go don (2008), Go -
wald (2008), Feldmann e al. (2011), Mu alik ishnan e al.
(2017), Schmi z e al. (2019), and Schmi z e al. (2021) ha e
ocussed on geome ical in es iga ions, whils o he s ha e
in es iga ed in he in luence o a ious ma e ials and col-
ou s on lase scanning (Cla k & Robson 2004; S e nbe g
e al. 2005; Voeg le e al. 2008; Yaman & Yılmaz 2017;
Pawłowicz 2018) and ye o he s ha e epo ed on calib a-
ion me hods o TLS (Lich i & F anke 2005; Rie do
2005; Reshe yuk 2006; Schulz 2007; Ke n 2008; Ke n &
Huxhagen 2008; Go wald e al. 2009; Abbas e al. 2013).
A e iew abou pe o mance e alua ion o e es ial lase
scanne s was gi en ecen ly by Mu alik ishnan (2021). A
quie new app oach is p oposed by Wujanz e al. (2018) o
imp o e he quali y o TLS poin clouds. They p opose in
hei a icle wo me hodologies o compu e in ensi y-based
s ochas ic models based on cap u ing geome ic p imi i es
in he o m o plana shapes u ilising 3D poin clouds, which
we e applied o phase shi and ime-o - ligh lase scanne .
The Labo a o y o Pho og amme y and Lase Scanning
o he HCU has been alida ing e es ial lase scanne s
since 2004, in o de o de elop hei own es ing and e alua-
ion me hods (Ke s en e al. 2004; Ke s en e al. 2005; S e n-
be g e al. 2005; Mechelke e al. 2007; Mechelke e al. 2008;
Ke s en e al. 2009; Linds aed e al. 2009, 2011, 2012),
which allow s a emen s abou he accu acy beha iou and
he applica ion po en ial o e es ial lase scanne sys-
ems o be made. Fu he mo e, he es ing p ocedu es a e
an essen ial pa o p ac ical eaching in he Geodesy and
Geoin o ma ics mas e p og amme a he uni e si y.
The e es ial lase scanne s in es iga ed
Fo he labo a o y and ield in es iga ions, a selec ion o
cu en and inno a i e lase scanning sys ems we e a ailable
om 2017 o 2020 (Fig.1): he Z+F IMAGER 5016 (2019)
om he Hambu g S a e O ice o C iminal In es iga ion
(LKA), he Leica BLK360 (2017), and he Leica RTC360
(2019) om he Ge man enginee ing company D . Hesse
und Pa ne Ingenieu e (dhp:i). Bo h scanne s (IMAGER
5016 and RTC360) ha e a speci ied dis ance measu emen
accu acy o 1 mm + 10 ppm and an angula accu acy o
0.004° and 0.005°, espec i ely. Whils he dis ance meas-
u emen o he IMAGER 5016 is based on he phase di e -
ence me hod, he Leica RTC360 uses a combina ion o phase
di e ence and ime-o - ligh me hods. Addi ional in eg a ed
senso s such as an inclina ion compensa o and came a, as
well as ex ensi e so wa e, make he sys ems lexible and
e icien o use. In 2020, h ee addi ional IMAGER 5016s
(2× LKA and 1× HCU) we e es ed in addi ion o HCU’s
wo olde Fa o Focus3D X330 and IMAGER 5010 lase
scanne s. Compa ed o all abo e-men ioned scanne s, he
Fig. 1 Te es ial lase scanne
in es iga ed ( .l. . .): Leica
BLK360, Leica RTC360, Z+F
IMAGER 5010, Z+F IMAGER
5016, and Fa o Focus3D X330
422 Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
Leica BLK360 is a low-cos scanne wi h mino p ecision.
The echnical speci ica ions o all es ed scanne s a e sum-
ma ised in Table1.
Geome ic accu acy es s in helabo a o y
The 3D es ield
The es ield used was se up in 2016 in he geode ic labo-
a o y o he new building o HCU Hambu g. The ini ial
esul s o he in es iga ions o he Leica BLK360 on his
es ield ha e al eady been published by Blaskow e al.
(2018). In con as o he es ield a he old loca ion (see
publica ion o Ke s en e al. 2009; Linds aed e al. 2009;
Linds aed e al. 2011; Linds aed e al. 2012), i has a sig-
ni ican ly smalle measu emen olume and ex ends o e
only one loo . Howe e , he leng h o he labo a o y esul s
in e e ence dis ances up o 35 m. The es ield consis s o
20 signalised b/w a ge s dis ibu ed on walls and ceiling in
he labo a o y (Fig.2), whe e each a ge is ins alled as a so-
called “poin nes ” o adap a co ne cube e lec o CCR o
highly accu a e e e ence measu emen s wi h a lase acke .
Howe e , o es ing lase scanning sys ems, hese special
adap e s allow he ins alla ion o a b/w a ge on each poin
nes (Fig.3 igh ). The in es iga ions in he 3D es ield p o-
ide in o ma ion abou se e al e o componen s o a lase
scanning sys em, which canno be de e mined sepa a ely in
his es . In addi ion o he dis ance and angula p ecision o
he scanne , he algo i hm o a ge i ing in he espec i e
Table 1 Technical speci ica ions o he lase scanne s es ed
Speci ica ion Leica BLK360 Leica RTC360 Z+F IMAGER 5016 /5010 Fa o Focus3D X330
Measu ing p ocedu e ToF wi h WFD ToF and phase Phase Phase
Field o iew H/V (°) 360/300 360/300 360/320 360/300
Range (m) 0.6–60 0.5–130 0.3–365/0.3–187 0.6–330
Measu emen a e (p s/s) 360,000 <2,000,000 Maximum 1,100,000 <1,000,000
Angula p ecision H/V (°) No da a 0.005 0.004/0.007 0.009/0.009
Ranging p ecision 4 mm a 10 m 1 mm + 10 ppm 1 mm + 10 ppm 2 mm + 0.3 mm a 25 m
Scan esolu ion 3 selec able esolu ion se -
ings
3 selec able esolu ion
se ings, 3/6/12 mm a
10 m
6 selec able esolu ion se -
ings, 1 … 12 mm a 10 m
1/1–1/32, 1.5–49 mm
a 10 m
Dis ance measu emen noise 0.3–0.5 mm a 10 m 0.4 mm a 10 m 0.3–0.5 mm a 10 m 0.3 mm a 10 m
3D poin p ecision 6 mm a 10 m 5.3 mm a 40 m No da a No da a
Came a In eg a ed In eg a ed Op ional add-on In eg a ed
Inclina ion senso No da a Visual ine ial sys em Dynamic compensa o Two-axis compensa o
Dimension (B × T × H)
(mm)
165 × 100 (H/D) 120 × 240 × 230 150 × 258 × 328/170 × 286
× 395
240 × 200 × 100
Weigh + ba e y (kg) 1.0 6.0 6.5/9.8 5.2
Ma ke launch 2017 2018 2016/2010 2013
Fig. 2 Dimensions o he 3D es ield o he HCU Hambu g including dis ibu ion o he b/w a ge s and ou scanne posi ions
423Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
so wa e also in luences he esul . The e o e, i is impo an
o use he so wa e associa ed wi h he scanne o he a ge
measu emen s in o de o be able o assess he o e all sys em
(ha dwa e and so wa e).
Each scanne in es iga ed scanned he es ield a he
same ou scan s a ions (Fig.2). The esolu ion o he
IMAGER 5016 and 5010 was se o high (6 mm a 10 m)
wi h quali y balanced and no mal, espec i ely, whils o
he Fa o Focus he esolu ion was se o 1/5 (7.7 mm a 10
m) wi h quali y 3×. Fo bo h Leica scanne , RTC360 and
BLK360, he highes possible scan esolu ion was selec ed
(3 mm a 10 m and 5 mm a 10 m, espec i ely). Due o
occlusions in he es ield, no all a ge s could always be
scanned in each scan, bu in gene al he e we e be ween 16
and 18 a ge s isible in he scans. The e e ence measu e-
men s o he a ge s we e pe o med using a Leica AT 960
lase acke in 2017 and 2019. The a ge s we e each meas-
u ed om h ee di e en s a ions, ans o med, and hen
a e aged. Acco ding o he manu ac u e ’s speci ica ions,
he angula accu acy o he Leica Absolu e T acke AT960
is ±15 μm + 6 μm/m, whils he dis ance accu acy is 10 μm
(Hexagon 2021). Thus, e e ence coo dina es wi h supe io
accu acy we e a ailable o he compa ison o e e ence and
scanned spa ial dis ances in he es ield.
Subsequen da a p ocessing (he e comp ising o a ge
measu emen s) was pe o med in he espec i e manu ac-
u e so wa e Z+F Lase Con ol, Leica Cyclone Regis e
360, and Fa o Scene. Ta ge i ing was implemen ed in all
p og ams and was pe o med au oma ically o he da a
o he Z+F and Fa o scanne s, whils he a ge s o he
RTC360 had o be pa ially adjus ed o co ec ed subse-
quen ly. O he maximum 760 dis ances o ou iew-
poin s, 613 dis ances we e e alua ed o he IMAGER
5016 and 666 dis ances o he RTC360. Fo he BLK360
scans, he ReCap P o so wa e om Au odesk, which
is pa o he scanning sys em, was used o measu e he
cen e o he scanned a ge s a each scan posi ion using
he a ge i ing unc ion o he so wa e. Al hough 18
a ge s we e always isible in each scan, only a numbe
be ween 11 and 13 a ge s could be i ed pe scan s a ion,
which esul ed in 326 dis ance combina ions. The emain-
ing a ge s could no be success ully i ed due o he scan
esolu ion and he long dis ances in he es ield.
The dis ances calcula ed om he cen e coo dina es
we e compa ed wi h he spa ial dis ances o he e e ence
measu emen and he di e ences we e plo ed in a equency
diag am (Fig.4). Fo bo h IMAGER 5016, a maximum shi
om 0.0 o +0.5 mm is ob ained wi h an almos ideal and
iden ical no mal dis ibu ion; he span (as he sum o he
absolu e maximum nega i e and posi i e de ia ion) o he
alues is 3.9 mm and 3.8 mm, espec i ely. In con as , he
cu e o he RTC360 is somewha la e and wide , and
he span is wice as la ge a 8.0 mm. On he o he hand, he
maximum is no shi ed om ze o, 160 alues we e clas-
si ied o ze o he e. Howe e , he span de e mined o he
scanne Fa o Focus and Leica BLK360 demons a e ha
he accu acy o he spa ial dis ances in he 3D es ield is
much wo se han he o he lase scanne s. This aspec is also
ob ious o hese wo lase scanne s in he spa ial dis ance
de ia ion in he ange o ±1 mm. A de ia ion o maximum
±1 mm was obse ed o he IMAGER 5016 in 93.1% and
92.4%, o he RTC360 in 77.6%, o he IMAGER 5010 in
75.7%, o he Fa o Focus in 40.5%, and in only 21.2% o
all alues o he Leica BLK360 (Table2). The mean alue
calcula ed om he dis ance di e ences (scanned s. e e -
ence) indica es only a small sys ema ic measu emen de ia-
ion o each scanne (accep BLK360 wi h 5.0 mm) in he
in es iga ed measu emen ange o he e e ence dis ances
(Table2). The e e ence dis ances a e in a ange be ween
1.8 m and 35.9 m (minimum and maximum 3D dis ances).
The scanne s measu e he spa ial dis ances be ween 0.3 mm
longe and −0.6 mm sho e on a e age, whils he BLK360
Fig. 3 F.l. . .: e es ial lase scanne Leica BLK360, Leica RTC360, Z+F IMAGER 5010, Z+F IMAGER 5016 in he 3D es ield, and b/w
a ge ins alla ion
424 Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
shows a sys ema ic e ec and scans he dis ances 5 mm
sho e on a e age (Table2).
The 20‑m compa a o ack
The dis ance accu acy o e es ial lase scanning sys-
ems was in es iga ed on he 20-m compa a o ack in he
geode ic labo a o y a HCU Hambu g. On he ack, any
dis ances up o 20 m in leng h can be ealised and de e -
mined o measu emen om one di ec ion wi h he lase
scanne and om he o he di ec ion wi h he e e ence
measu emen sys em (Leica AT960 lase acke o Leica
TS60 o al s a ion). The b/w a ge o sphe e (199-mm
diame e ) is moun ed on a ca iage oge he wi h a co ne
cube e lec o o he e e ence measu emen s. Wi h his
mo able sledge, dis ances o 1 o 20 m in me e in e als
a e ealised. The measu emen se up o checking he dis-
ance measu emen accu acy o e es ial lase scanning
sys ems is illus a ed in Fig.5 and Fig.6.
Fig. 4 Resul s o he compa i-
son o spa ial dis ances in he
es ield
0
100
200
300
400
-20-18 -16-14 -12-10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0246
81
0
F equency
Di e ences (scanned s. e e ence) [mm]
Compa ison o 3D dis ances in he es ield
Fa o Focus3D X330
IMAGER 5010 HCU
IMAGER 5016 HCU
IMAGER 5016 LKA
Leica RTC360
Leica BLK360
Table 2 Resul s o he compa ison o spa ial dis ances in he 3D es ield o six lase scanne s
Compa ison o spa ial dis ances (3D) Z+F 5016 LKA Fa o Focus Z+F 5010 HCU Z+F 5016 HCU RTC360 BLK360
Numbe o dis ances 613 630 630 630 666 326
Minimum de ia ion (mm) −2.1 −33.4 −3.1 −2.1 −4.5 −26.5
Maximum de ia ion (mm) 1.8 23.9 3.7 1.7 3.5 9.8
Span (mm) 3.9 57.3 6.8 3.8 8.0 36.3
Mean alue (mm) 0.2 −0.6 −0.4 0.3 −0.3 −0.5
S anda d de ia ion mean alue (mm) 0.4 4.0 0.8 0.4 0.8 4.2
S3D in −1 … +1 mm (%) 93.1 40.5 75.7 92.4 77.6 21.2
Fig. 5 Measu emen se up o
he 20-m compa a o ack in
he labo a o y o HCU Ham-
bu g
425Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434

1 3
Fi s , he posi ion o he lase scanne is de e mined in he
coo dina e sys em o he lase acke o de i e he dis ance
DTS be ween lase acke and lase scanne . Fo quali y
con ol his measu emen has o be conduc ed be o e and
a e he scanning o he a ge s and sphe es. Secondly, he
o se be ween CCR and sphe e o a ge on he ca iage has
o be de e mined by measu emen s o he posi ion o he a -
ge /sphe e and he CCR poin nes . Fu he mo e, he a ge
hickness o 2.03 mm and he adius o he CCR — 19.05
mm — mus be aken in o accoun and added o he o se
calcula ed om he measu emen s. The o se be ween CCR
and sphe e cen e is 300.21 mm, whils he o se be ween
CCR and a ge is 129.06 mm. In 2019, he e e ence dis-
ances we e measu ed wi h a Leica TS60 o al s a ion, wi h
an accu acy o 0.6 mm + 2 ppm acco ding o he manu ac-
u e speci ica ion when measu ed on a co ne cube e lec o .
In 2017 and 2020, he e e ence dis ances we e measu ed
wi h he Leica AT960 lase acke .
Two passes we e scanned o each o he scanne s on he
compa a o ack, one o he a ge and one o he sphe e.
The i s scan was s a ed a a dis ance o 1 m om he scan-
ne posi ion and hen con inued a in e als o 1 o 20 m
each. The scan esolu ion o each o he IMAGER 5016 and
5010 was se o high wi h quali y no mal (6 mm a 10 m),
o he Fa o Focus he esolu ion was 1/5 wi h quali y 3×
(7.7 mm a 10 m), and o he BLK360 and RTC360 he
highes le el was chosen (5 mm a 10 m and 3 mm a 10 m,
espec i ely). Whils wi h he IMAGER scanne s and he
Fa o Focus only a small sec ion o he a ge /sphe e was
scanned each ime, a comple e pano amic scan had o be
scanned each ime wi h he wo Leica scanne due o he
non-exis ing unc ionali y o a sec ion scan. Due o he high
scanning speed, his did no esul in a signi ican ly longe
scanning ime, bu he da a olume o he RTC360 acqui ed
in all h ee es s in he lab was mo e han 100 imes la ge
han ha o he IMAGER scanne s. This la ge da a olume
hen ine i ably en ailed longe da a p ocessing.
Bo h a ge s and sphe es could be measu ed in he so -
wa e ReCap P o o all scans o he BLK360. Howe e , he
i ing o he a ge was only possible up o a dis ance o 15
m, whils he i ing o he sphe e could only be pe o med
up o a dis ance o 18 m due o an insu icien scan esolu-
ion. Fu he mo e, he sphe e i ing ailed a a dis ance o
only 1 m, p esumably due o he sho dis ance. The i -
ing o he sphe es was conduc ed in ReCap P o wi h a ee
adius. The manu ac u e ’s speci ied dis ance measu emen
accu acy o his BLK360 is 4 mm a 10 m o 7 mm a 20
m. Thus, accu acy o measu emen on a ge s is expec ed
o be in his ange o e en sligh ly be e . Bu , no all o he
scanned dis ances a e wi hin his speci ica ion as illus a ed
in Fig.7. Howe e , i was no possible o judge whe he he
poo a ge i ing in he so wa e is di ec ly esponsible o
he inaccu a e dis ance de e mina ion o whe he he e a e
ins umen s e o s. Fo eliable analysis, u he in es iga-
ions should be ca ied ou . Ne e heless, i is no iceable
in his in es iga ion ha all dis ances we e de e mined oo
sho . Sphe e i ing, on he o he hand, caused ewe p ob-
lems in ReCap P o han a ge i ing and i was always suc-
cess ul excep o he measu emen o he sho es dis ance.
A check o he ee adius sphe e i ing in ano he so -
wa e (Geomagic) ga e simila esul s, bu wi h a ela i ely
cons an o se o abou 4 mm up o he dis ance o 16 m
(Fig.7).
The diag am in Fig.8 shows he esul s o he scans o
he b/w a ge . In con as o he BLK360, all scanne s show
small de ia ions om he e e ence be ween −1.0 mm and
+1.6 mm. The de ia ions o he IMAGER 5016 (LKA) a e
a ound ze o in bo h he posi i e and nega i e ange, which
Fig. 6 Te es ial lase scanne a he compa a o ack ( .l. . .): Leica BLK360, Leica RTC360, Z+F IMAGER 5016, Leica Absolu e T acke
AT960 ( e e ence sys em 2017, 2020), and b/w a ge and sphe e moun ed on a me allic sledge
426 Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
is con i med by he mean alue o −0.07 mm. In con as ,
he de ia ions o he RTC360 (mean alue +0.5 mm), he
IMAGER 5016 (HCU) (mean alue +0.2 mm), and he
Fa o Focus (mean alue +0.7 mm) a e all posi i e wi h 1–2
excep ions; i.e. he dis ances a e gene ally minimally oo
sho . Only he IMAGER 5010 ends o show de ia ions in
he nega i e ange (mean alue −0.5 mm); i.e. he dis ances
a e hen measu ed minimally oo long.
Fo he measu emen s o he sphe es, he esul looks a bi
di e en (Fig.9), because he de ia ions end o be nega i e
o all bu a ew scanne s. Fo he IMAGER 5016 (LKA) all
de ia ions a e nega i e, bu less han 1 mm; i.e. he dis ances
Fig. 7 Dis ance measu emen
accu acy on he 20-m com-
pa a o ack o Leica BLK360
scans o bo h b/w a ge and
sphe e
-12
-8
-5
-1
3
7
11
14
18
123456789101112131415161718
De iaon [mm]
Dis ance [m]
Ta ge ReCap P o Sphe e ReCap P o Sphe e Geomagic
Fig. 8 Dis ance measu emen
accu acy on he 20-m com-
pa a o ack o scans o a b/w
a ge
-1.0
-0.7
-0.5
-0.2
0.0
0.3
0.6
0.8
1.1
1.3
1.6
1.52.5 3.54.5 5.56.5 7.58.5 9.510.5 11.5 12.5 13.5 14.5 15.5 16.5 17.5 18.5 19.5 20.5
]mm[)ecne e e o (noi ai eD
Dis ance [m]
Dis ance de iaon -b/w a ge
Fa o Focus ZF 5010 HCU ZF 5016 HCU ZF 5016 LKA RTC 360
Fig. 9 Dis ance measu emen
accu acy on he 20-m compa a-
o ack o scans o a sphe e
-4.5
-3.0
-1.5
0.0
1.5
1.52.5 3.54.5 5.56.5 7.58.5 9.510.5 11.5 12.5 13.5 14.5 15.5 16.5 17.5 18.5 19.5 20.5 21.5
]mm[)ecne e e o (noi ai eD
Dis ance [m]
Dis ance de iaon -sphe e
Fa o FocusZF 5010 HCUZF 5016 HCUZF 5016 LKA RTC 360
427Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
a e measu ed sligh ly oo long. The o he IMAGER 5016
(HCU), he IMAGER 5010, and he Fa o Focus con i m
good esul s wi h dis ance de ia ion less han 1 mm. The
esul s o he RTC360 a e signi ican ly wo se s a ing a a
dis ance o 15 m wi h de ia ions up o −3.2 mm, bu o
sho e dis ances he de ia ions a e in he simila ange o
±1 mm. I can be assumed ha hese la ge de ia ions a
longe dis ances a e caused by an insu icien ly p ecise a -
ge i ing o he sphe es, since his in pa had o be applied
se e al imes due o luc ua ing esul s.
The plana s one slab
Wi h he measu emen on he plana s one slab, he quali y
pa ame e “ la ness measu emen e o ” can be de e mined
acco ding o he guideline VDI/VDE 2634 (pa 2, VDI/
VDE 2012). The guideline VDI/VDE 2634, pa s 2 and 3,
is an acc edi ed s anda d o accep ance es s ( e i ying he
speci ied accu acy) and e- e i ica ion ( o ensu e long- e m
compliance) o op ical measu emen sys ems based on a ea
scanning (VDI/VDE 2012, 2008). Using he amewo k o
well-de ined es scena ios, sui able es objec s (a e ac s)
a e employed o de e mine quali y pa ame e s. The la ness
measu emen e o is de ined as he ange o he signed
dis ances o he measu emen poin om he bes - i plane
calcula ed acco ding o he leas -squa es me hod. The esul
is a s a emen abou he measu emen noise o he lase scan-
ning sys em.
The e es ial lase scanne s we e placed in on o a
s one slab a a dis ance o app oxima ely 10 m o scan he
plana su ace unde cons an labo a o y condi ions a di e -
en esolu ions (Fig.10 le ). The scanned poin s belonging
o he slab we e c opped and a bes - i plane was calcula ed
h ough all un il e ed poin clouds using GOM Inspec so -
wa e (V8 SR1).
The diag am in Fig.10 shows a clea linea ela ionship
be ween inc easing scan esolu ion (o numbe o poin s) and
la ness measu emen e o o he IMAGER 5016 (LKA).
The absolu e de ia ion (span o signed dis ances be ween he
scanned poin s on he s one slab) inc eases om 1.1 mm o
he lowes esolu ion o 3.3 mm o he highes esolu ion.
Since he empe a u e in he ins umen emained cons an ,
he span ep esen s he measu emen noise o he ins umen ,
which inc eases sligh ly wi h inc easing esolu ion. A e y
simila beha iou , bu wi h a sligh ly be e esul , was con-
i med o he IMAGER 5016 (HCU) and o he IMAGER
5010 wi h he span o 0.7 mm/0.6 mm o middle esolu-
ion and 1.5 mm o ul ahigh esolu ion and 0.9 mm o
supe high esolu ion, espec i ely, in 2020. Howe e , hese
esul s a e no included in Fig.10. Fo he RTC360, on he
o he hand, he h ee esul s o he span be ween 4.3 mm
and 4.6 mm a e almos iden ical o sys ema ically cons an
(Fig.10). The highe numbe o poin s o he RTC360 is
p obably due o he combined measu emen p ocedu e o
ime-o - ligh and phase shi . The s anda d de ia ion o he
Z+F IMAGER 5016 wi h maximum 0.36 mm is lowe han
ha o he RTC360 wi h maximum 0.65 mm, bu bo h scan-
ne a e well below 1 mm.
The ield es p ocedu e
The e i ica ion o e es ial lase scanne s in he labo a-
o y o in he es ield is a me hod o de ice e i ica ion ha
is no possible o e e y use . Especially es ields, which
ha e an inc eased space equi emen , a e p ima ily ound
a uni e si ies and ins i u es; in smalle o ices his possi-
bili y is o en no a ailable. Th ough he de elopmen o
he DVW ins uc ion shee 07-2014, s anda dised ield es
p ocedu es o he es ing o lase scanne s ha e been c e-
a ed, which a e possible o all use s and equi e a limi ed
amoun o ime. This conce ns sys ema ic ins umen de ia-
ions esul ing om he dis ance measu emen o he axis
mechanics (Nei zel e al. 2014). These a e pa ly iden ical
o he de ia ions o a o al s a ion, bu canno be elimina ed
by a ull se e alua ion (Hols e al. 2018). Thus, he p oce-
du e acco ding o DVW ins uc ion shee is manu ac u e -
independen and p o ides an oppo uni y o compa e he
manu ac u e ’s speci ica ions wi h he accu acies achie ed
in he ield es p ocedu e. I excessi e de ia ions a e ound,
Fig. 10 Resul s (2019) o he la ness measu emen e o in a able (le ) and in a diag am ( igh )
428 Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434
1 3
i is ecommended o send in he ins umen o calib a ion
i he manu ac u e has no al eady p o ided he possibili y
o en e co ec ion alues.
A e he labo a o y es s p esen ed abo e, he wo TLS
sys ems (IMAGER 5016 and Leica RTC360) we e subjec ed
o he ield es p ocedu e in 2019, on he one hand o p o e
hei sui abili y o use, and on he o he hand o implemen
he ield es me hod a he HCU Hambu g and o se up a
sui able se up a a sui able loca ion o u u e in es iga ions.
In Sep embe 2020, h ee addi ional scanne s, wo IMAGER
5016 and one Fa o Focus3D X330, we e es ed by he ield
es me hod.
The measu emen se up was ca ied ou di ec ly in on
o he HCU Hambu g building on he Henning-Vosche au-
Pla z o he wes . He e, he condi ions a e a ailable o mee
all he equi emen s speci ied in he DVW ins uc ion shee
as a as possible (Fig.11), because bo h he necessa y space
o longe ho izon al sec ions and he possibili y o an ele-
a ed a ge o he e ical iangle a e gi en. An o e iew
o he si e wi h he ins alled a ge s (blue ci cles) and scan-
ne s a ions ( ed ci cles) is illus a ed in Fig.12.
The measu emen s we e pe o med o he scanne s in 2019
in abou 2 h each and in 2020 in abou 3 h each, because six
addi ional a ge s we e scanned a igh angles o scan s a ion
1 a dis ances o 5 o 30 m o he de e mina ion o uT. Fo
each scan s a ion, he a ge s we e scanned ou imes each,
aking in o accoun he long dis ances o he esolu ion. Thus,
wi h he Leica RTC360, he highes esolu ion le el (3 mm
a 10 m) was selec ed in each case and an all- ound scan was
pe o med; on he o he hand wi h he IMAGER 5016, only
sec ion scans o he a ge s we e scanned wi h he highes eso-
lu ion o 1 mm a 10-m dis ance a e a ull pano amic scan.
Fig. 11 Schema ic measu emen se up o he ield es p ocedu e (le , acco ding o DVW ins uc ion shee 07-2014 in Nei zel e al. (2014)) and
Z+F IMAGER 5016 scanning T4 and T2 ( igh )
Fig. 12 Pano amic iew o he
measu emen se up o he ield
es p ocedu e a he Henning-
Vosche au-Pla z in on o he
HCU building ( igh ) acco d-
ing o he se up in Fig.11. Red
ci cles = scanne s a ions, blue
ci cles = a ge posi ions
429Applied Geoma ics (2022) 14:421–434