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The Use of UAV Platforms for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Surveying

A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (26 May 2024) | Viewed by 10123

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Andreas Georgopoulos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory of Photogrammetry, National Technical University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Interests: photogrammetry; cultural heritage; monitoring camera calibration; digital orthophotography
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Dimitrios Skarlatos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Civil Engineering and Geomatics, Cyprus University of Technology, 30 Archbishop Kyprianos Street, Limassol 3036, Cyprus
Interests: underwater; image-based modelling; UAV; mapping; photogrammetry; color correction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Optical images and photogrammetric procedures have supported the documentation and monitoring of cultural heritage for over a century. High vantage points for taking the images were always advantageous, as they offer to the observer an overall and more holistic view of the site. Low-altitude photography has equally been a tool for cultural heritage documentation, however the platforms (kites, balloons, petrol-engine-propelled model aircraft and helicopters) were rather tedious to operate until, of course, the advent and the development of electrical motors and the subsequent boom of UAVs.

Almost two decades of research and development has led to either fixed-wing or multi-rotor machines of many sizes and capabilities, able to perform accurate flights with significant payloads. Any kind of sensor (optical, Infrared, LiDAR, etc.) is now possible lift and, hence, a multitude of data can be collected in a fraction of the time and cost required in the past.

This Special Issue aims to attract contributions from experts all over the world reporting on the development and application of UAV-borne sensors of any kind to document and monitor cultural heritage sites.

Contributions are welcome covering the following—and other—subjects:

  • Innovative implementations of UAV-borne optical images and LiDAR to monitoring and documenting cultural heritage sites;
  • Innovative applications of multispectral data acquisitions via a UAV platform for cultural heritage sites;
  • Development of software solutions to overcome the deficiencies of the UAV-borne sensors (e.g., low-resolution small GSD, Rolling shutter, etc.);
  • Developing of automated solutions for processing the large amount of image data acquired by low-altitude flights for cultural heritage surveying and monitoring;
  • Developing integrated UAV solutions for cultural heritage documentation.

Prof. Dr. Andreas Georgopoulos
Dr. Dimitrios Skarlatos
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Remote Sensing is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • UAV
  • cultural heritage documentation ;
  • image-based modeling;
  • multispectral data acquisition
  • UAV-borne LiDAR

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 1380 KiB  
Article
Highlighting the Use of UAV to Increase the Resilience of Native Hawaiian Coastal Cultural Heritage
by Kainalu K. Steward, Brianna K. Ninomoto, Haunani H. Kane, John H. R. Burns, Luke Mead, Kamala Anthony, Luka Mossman, Trisha Olayon, Cybil K. Glendon-Baclig and Cherie Kauahi
Remote Sens. 2024, 16(12), 2239; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs16122239 - 20 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1593
Abstract
The use of Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is becoming a preferred method for supporting integrated coastal zone management, including cultural heritage sites. Loko i′a, traditional Hawaiian fishponds located along the coastline, have historically provided sustainable seafood sources. These coastal cultural heritage sites are [...] Read more.
The use of Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is becoming a preferred method for supporting integrated coastal zone management, including cultural heritage sites. Loko i′a, traditional Hawaiian fishponds located along the coastline, have historically provided sustainable seafood sources. These coastal cultural heritage sites are undergoing revitalization through community-driven restoration efforts. However, sea level rise (SLR) poses a significant climate-induced threat to coastal areas globally. Loko i′a managers seek adaptive strategies to address SLR impacts on flooding, water quality, and the viability of raising native fish species. This study utilizes extreme tidal events, known as King Tides, as a proxy to estimate future SLR scenarios and their impacts on loko i′a along the Keaukaha coastline in Hilo, Hawai′i. In situ water level sensors were deployed at each site to assess flooding by the loko i′a type and location. We also compare inundation modeled from UAV-Structure from Motion (SfM) Digital Elevation Models (DEM) to publicly available Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) DEMs, alongside observed flooding documented by UAV imagery in real time. The average water levels (0.64 m and 0.88 m) recorded in this study during the 2023 King Tides are expected to reflect the average sea levels projected for 2060–2080 in Hilo, Hawai′i. Our findings indicate that high-resolution UAV-derived DEMs accurately model observed flooding (with 89% or more agreement), whereas LiDAR-derived flood models significantly overestimate observed flooding (by 2–5 times), outlining a more conservative approach. To understand how UAV datasets can enhance the resilience of coastal cultural heritage sites, we looked into the cost, spatial resolution, accuracy, and time necessary for acquiring LiDAR- and UAV-derived datasets. This study ultimately demonstrates that UAVs are effective tools for monitoring and planning for the future impacts of SLR on coastal cultural heritage sites at a community level. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of UAV Platforms for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Surveying)
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24 pages, 16093 KiB  
Article
Inspecting Pond Fabric Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-Assisted Modeling, Smartphone Augmented Reality, and a Gaming Engine
by Naai-Jung Shih, Yun-Ting Tasi, Yi-Ting Qiu and Ting-Wei Hsu
Remote Sens. 2024, 16(6), 943; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs16060943 - 7 Mar 2024
Viewed by 893
Abstract
Historical farm ponds have been designed, maintained, and established as heritage sites or cultural landscapes. Has their gradually evolving function resulted in changes to the landscape influenced by their degenerated nature and the new urban fabric? This study aimed to assess the interaction [...] Read more.
Historical farm ponds have been designed, maintained, and established as heritage sites or cultural landscapes. Has their gradually evolving function resulted in changes to the landscape influenced by their degenerated nature and the new urban fabric? This study aimed to assess the interaction between urban fabrics and eight farm ponds in Taoyuan by determining the demolition ratio of ponds subject to the transit-oriented development (TOD) of infrastructure and to evaluate land cover using historical maps, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-assisted 3D modeling, smartphone augmented reality (AR), and a gaming engine to inspect and compare well-developed or reactivated ponds and peripheries. A 46% reduction in pond area around Daxi Interchange was an important indicator of degeneration in the opposite direction to TOD-based instrumentation. Three-dimensional skyline analysis enabled us to create an urban context matrix to be used in the simulations. Nearly 55 paired AR comparisons were made with 100 AR cloud-accessed models from the Augment® platform, and we produced a customized interface to align ponds with landmark construction or other ponds using Unreal Engine®. Smartphone AR is a valuable tool for situated comparisons and was used to conduct analyses across nine categories, from buildings and infrastructure to the intensity and stage of development. The gaming engine handled large point models with high detail and was supported by a customized blueprint. We found that 3D virtual dynamics highlighted the evolving interstitial space and role substitution of the agricultural fabric. This combination of heterogeneous platforms provides a practical method of preserving heritage and enables conflict resolution through policy and TOD instrumentation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of UAV Platforms for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Surveying)
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21 pages, 6577 KiB  
Article
Traditional Village Building Extraction Based on Improved Mask R-CNN: A Case Study of Beijing, China
by Wenke Wang, Yang Shi, Jie Zhang, Lujin Hu, Shuo Li, Ding He and Fei Liu
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(10), 2616; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15102616 - 18 May 2023
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2292
Abstract
As an essential material carrier of cultural heritage, the accurate identification and effective monitoring of buildings in traditional Chinese villages are of great significance to the sustainable development of villages. However, along with rapid urbanization in recent years, many towns have experienced problems [...] Read more.
As an essential material carrier of cultural heritage, the accurate identification and effective monitoring of buildings in traditional Chinese villages are of great significance to the sustainable development of villages. However, along with rapid urbanization in recent years, many towns have experienced problems such as private construction, hollowing out, and land abuse, destroying the traditional appearance of villages. This study combines deep learning technology and UAV remote sensing to propose a high-precision extraction method for conventional village architecture. Firstly, this study constructs the first sample database of traditional village architecture based on UAV remote sensing orthophotos of eight representative villages in Beijing, combined with fine classification; secondly, in the face of the diversity and complexity of the built environment in traditional villages, we use the Mask R-CNN instance segmentation model as the basis and Path Aggregate Feature Pyramid Network (PAFPN) and Atlas Space Pyramid Pool (ASPP) as the main strategies to enhance the backbone model for multi-scale feature extraction and fusion, using data increment and migration learning as auxiliary means to overcome the shortage of labeled data. The results showed that some categories could achieve more than 91% accuracy, with average precision, recall, F1-score, and Intersection over Union (IoU) values reaching 71.3% (+7.8%), 81.9% (+4.6%), 75.7% (+6.0%), and 69.4% (+8.5%), respectively. The application practice in Hexi village shows that the method has good generalization ability and robustness, and has good application prospects for future traditional village conservation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of UAV Platforms for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Surveying)
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32 pages, 4869 KiB  
Article
A KG-Based Integrated UAV Approach for Engineering Semantic Trajectories in the Cultural Heritage Documentation Domain
by Konstantinos Kotis, Sotiris Angelis, Efthymia Moraitou, Vasilis Kopsachilis, Ermioni-Eirini Papadopoulou, Nikolaos Soulakellis and Michail Vaitis
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(3), 821; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15030821 - 31 Jan 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2068
Abstract
Data recordings of the movement of vehicles can be enriched with heterogeneous and multimodal data beyond latitude, longitude, and timestamp and enhanced with complementary segmentations, constituting a semantic trajectory. Semantic Web (SW) technologies have been extensively used for the semantic integration of heterogeneous [...] Read more.
Data recordings of the movement of vehicles can be enriched with heterogeneous and multimodal data beyond latitude, longitude, and timestamp and enhanced with complementary segmentations, constituting a semantic trajectory. Semantic Web (SW) technologies have been extensively used for the semantic integration of heterogeneous and multimodal movement-related data, and for the effective modeling of semantic trajectories, in several domains. In this paper, we present an integrated solution for the engineering of cultural heritage semantic trajectories generated from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and represented as knowledge graphs (KGs). Particularly, this work is motivated by, and evaluated based on, the application domain of UAV missions for documenting regions/points of cultural heritage interest. In this context, this research work extends our previous work on UAV semantic trajectories, contributing (a) an updated methodology for the engineering of semantic trajectories as KGs (STaKG), (b) an implemented toolset for the management of KG-based semantic trajectories, (c) a refined ontology for the representation of knowledge related to UAV semantic trajectories and to cultural heritage documentation, and (d) the application and evaluation of the proposed methodology, the developed toolset, and the ontology within the domain of UAV-based cultural heritage documentation. The evaluation of the integrated UAV solution was achieved by exploiting real datasets collected during three UAV missions to document sites of cultural interest in Lesvos, Greece, i.e., the UNESCO-protected petrified forest of Lesvos Petrified Forest/Geopark, the village of Vrissa, and University Hill. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of UAV Platforms for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Surveying)
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19 pages, 6693 KiB  
Article
Waterlogging Assessment of Chinese Ancient City Sites Considering Microtopography: A Case Study of the PuZhou Ancient City Site, China
by Xinyuan Chai, Youqiang Dong and Yihao Li
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(17), 4417; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14174417 - 5 Sep 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1601
Abstract
A waterlogging assessment framework based on the stormwater management model (SWMM), considering the microtopography, is proposed (taking into account the complexity of the underlying surface, which contains various micro-surface features within the Chinese ancient city site). We used the ancient city site of [...] Read more.
A waterlogging assessment framework based on the stormwater management model (SWMM), considering the microtopography, is proposed (taking into account the complexity of the underlying surface, which contains various micro-surface features within the Chinese ancient city site). We used the ancient city site of PuZhou as the study case and the framework is detailed in this paper. First, the land cover was classified by combining the analysis of UAVs and field surveys; subsequently, a revised sub-catchment division method considering the land cover was proposed to obtain more accurate and reliable sub-catchments; thirdly, the parameters used in SWMM were determined by analyzing the micro-surface features; finally, the inundation area was calculated based on the SWMM-GIS. To verify the advantage of our proposed framework, two comparative experiments where the land cover and the micro-surface features were not considered in the stages of the sub-catchment division and parameter estimations were carried out. The simulated inundation area derived from our proposed framework with the return periods of 10a., 50a., 100a., and 1000a. were (separately) 22,500 m2, 29,500 m2, 33,600 m2, and 44,200 m2, which are more in line with the actual situation compared with the two designed comparative experiments. The experimental results show that our proposed framework has significant meaning to the waterlogging assessment on the Chinese ancient city site. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of UAV Platforms for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Surveying)
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