HR AFR/GOVERNMENT OF INDIA Ye WaTee/MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS, (tat atg)/(RAILWAY BOARD) Wo/No. 2015/Track-I/24(1)/18/1 feaiig/Date: 09.10.2017 Principal Chief Engincer(s), All Indian Railways. Chief Administrative Officer(s)/Con., All Indian Railways. CMD/KRCL, IRCON, RVNL, RITES. fava/Sub: GIS platform of Indian Railways - Use of Aerial Mapping and Videography by UAS-Drone. ‘WasiRef: 1. This office letter of even no. dated 21.4.2016 on the above subject, addressed to CAQs/All Indian Railways and CMD/KRCL, RVNL, IRCON and RITES 2. This office letter of even no. dated 10.10.2016 on the above subject, addressed to GMs/All Indian Railways and CMD/KRCL, DFCC, IRCON, RVNL, RITES. 3 This office letter of even no. dated 04.08.2017 on the above subject, addressed to GMs/All Indian Railways and CMD/KRCL, DFCC, IRCON, RVNL, RITES. Use of Unmanned Aerial System (UAS-Drone) is considered an efficient tool for mapping and monitoring of transportation corridors, projects etc. Railway would like to leverage this latest technology for better monitoring and management. GIS platform of Indian Railways is also under development for which UAS-Drone mapping input is required. Railways were asked vide various references mentioned above to carry out this work but the progress in this regard has been very little Guidelines regarding use of this technology for Open Line railway network and for various construction projects are attached herewith as Annexure. Accordingly, work may be carried out as under: Open Line network: Railways may carry out one round of recording of a) all operational routes of Indian Railways by 31.03.2018, as per the guidelines attached,b) Construction Projects: UAS-Drone technology may be used for monitoring/mapping of construction projects for increasing the efficiency and faster completion of projects as per requirement in field according to guidelines attached. ze) CAzKelir LAX (B.P. Awasthi) Executive Director Track (P), Railway Board. WaFAIDA: As above ufafeft/Copy to: 1, AM/Works, PED/Bridge, PED/SD for information 2. EDCE(P), EDTK(M), EDCE(B&S), EDTK(MC), EDCE(G), ED(W), ED(PM), EDL&A(I), EDW(P) for information and necessary action.Ll. (5_crone suivey. guidlines “v3 Aerial Videography and Orthophoto/ photogrammetry survey of Indian Railways Network using UAS(Drone| Introduction Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) commonly known as “Drone” is considered as an efficient tool for mapping, monitoring, inspection and planning for transportation corridors and projects. This latest technology needs to be leveraged for better monitoring and management on Indian Railways. The geographical intelligence captured by drone technology can help in efficient mapping, project management and faster decision making. Aerial Videography is used for the applications where the project monitoring is to be done for managerial appreciation, reconnaissance of proposed railway route, site monitoring in case of specific incident and general site overview, etc. where measurement of the distances, area or volume is not required. This is more suitable for monitoring of construction projects and general appreciation of relevant area Orthophoto/Photogrammetry Survey is to be used for Open Line asset mapping, proposed/under construction project for supporting engineering decision making, etc. This methodology provides high resolution imagery which can be used for mapping and for GIS Portal. Measurement of the distances, area or volume is also possible on this. 3D reality model can be prepared using this. For mapping of the existing rail network this method is to be adopted by open line organisation. Construction organisation can use this method to create 3D model and drawings with measurement facility ete. Videography Viz-a-viz Photogrammetry Survey/Orthophoto and it’s Usages In Aerial Videography, video is captured using a video camera fitted on UAS (Drone) as a live video in down looking or oblique mode at low altitude. Output of this recording is a Geotagged video file which can be viewed as video played on Real player/Window Media Player etc, Subsequently annotations can be put on the video in post processing. Aerial Videography is useful for a) Quick progress monitoring; b) Managerial appreciation; ©) Location based insight; 4d) Accident or Incident monitoring, 09.10.2017 Page 1 of 821 Zo 2.3, 5. drone survey_puidelines-v3 Orthophoto is an acrial photograph that has been geometrically corrected by a photogrammetric process called “Ortho-Rectification” Once an aerial photo has been ortho-rectified, it is commonly referred to as an orthophoto. For developing Orthophoto “Down Looking” still/stationary photographs are taken at close interval in overlapping mode. Raw output of this method is geotagged photographs. These photographs can be further geometrically corrected and mosaiced using photogrammetry technology to prepare georeferenced image file. Photogrammetry Survey/Orthophoto provide high resolution and high accuracy images which can be used for accurate measurement of distances and area. This method is useful for Progress monitoring; Asset Mapping; Preliminary Survey and alignment finalization; Preparation of engineering plan; Direct measurement in CAD software such as Autocad/Bentley ete, and GIS software; Producing drawing file by digitizing orthophoto; Superimposing the design drawing: 3D-Reality model can be prepared for direct measurement in 3 dimension; Elevation modelling/contour mapping can be done; Visualization and Simulation An orthophoto can be used in GIS/CAD/Engineering design software to measure true or real life distances, area & angle of features within the photograph and collection of various information such as railway track, structures, assets, land etc in vector format, because it is an accurate representation of the Earth's surface. ‘The variations in the topography of the earth affects the accuracy of the measurement from an aerial image. The more topographically diverse the landscape, the more distortion inherent in the photograph because of scale variation. This is corrected in ortho- rectification Orthophoto/photogrammetry Survey Scope of Work: All operational routes of Open Line and under construction projects are to be covered. Frequency: At present one round of survey of all operational routes to be done. Subsequently frequency will be laid down later. Low Altitude Aerial Mapping 09.10.2017 Page 2 of 82.4. b) 8 drone survey. guidelines v3 The system uses high end sophisticated “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)" technology for taking high resolution “Down Looking” images from an onboard calibrated camera. All the Photographs should be precisely geo-referenced by GPS, Glonass, etc. for accurate aerial triangulation process. These photographs are to be Processed using the 3D stereo photogrammetry technology to produce accurate high resolution GIS ready mosaiced orthophotos. It is required that the relevant routes, areas & features are cle: visible in the output OrthoPhoto after processing, The mapping of the relevant assets of railway infrastructure is to be done and create the GIS ready file in “shp” format for various analysis and appreciation. Data Acquisition/Image Capturing Nadir (90° to the ground) aerial Imagery to be captured from the UAS (Drone) suitable for aerial survey with Onboard GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System)-(GPS, Glonass, etc.) which may be SBAS or RTK (Real Time Kinematics) assisted, IMU (Inertial measurement units) integrated with High Resolutions calibrated camera, The camera system fitted with Gimbal is to be used for stable and clear imagery acquisition. Images are to be geotagged based on the precise location by GNSS for further photogrammetric processing The Flight planning to be done using the photogrammetry fight planning application ensuring following: Area Coverage - Flight lines need to be planned for whole length of the route inchiding but not limited to Track, level crossing, Important/Major/Minor Bridges, LHS, ROB/RUB, Stations, yard, depot, Buildings & Structures, Land, encroachments, roads, etc. Re-collection of the images to be done in case train is passing or standing on the main line, it is most important that the main track is 100% visible without obstruction of the train. Camera Resolution should be 20 MP to achieve clear ground details. Resolution ~ The final Orthophoto should have 2. cm GSD (Ground Sample Distance- distance measured on the ground between pixel centres in an image) Angle - 90 degree to the ground or Nadir angle to be used unless specified for specific purpose. Overlap - 75% forward and 55% lateral/strip overlap in the captured images. Page 3 of & 09.10.2017) Flying Height - A very low altitude flight height of less than 200 ft to be used as per flying guidelines and civil Aerospace restrictions in India. 8) Live Check - Live picture should be available at control station while doing the survey to capture the relevant project details precisely with right context. h) Photographic Conditions * Ground must be free from fog, haze, dust, and smoke * Data to be collected in good light conditions * No train on main line i) Image Quality * Should be clear, free from blurring and should be sharp in detail. + No “warping” or ‘image smear” or “stretched” areas should be there in images. * No inconsistencies should be there in tone and density between adjacent images Calibration of Camera - Camera calibration process shall be done to know the essential camera parameter for photogrammetry processing such as Calibrated focal length, Principal point offset, Camera Lense distortion (radial and symmetric), pixel size, each ji) photo size. 2.5. Data Processing Images captured from UAS (drone) to be processed using professional stereo photogrammetry software to develop the final high resolution, scale corrected, distortion free ortho tiles & mosaic with map details. Following are the steps a) Initial image processing (Checking images as per Image capture guideline in para 2.1.4). b) XY Ground control/check points are to be taken from Google Earth/Bhuvan to ensure that Final Ortho fits geometrically with existing GIS platform having Google Earth/Bhuvan as base imagery. For recently built railway lines/Proposed lines/Under construction projects where the Google Earth/Bhuvan have old imagery and does not show the railway route. XYZ control points/check points may be taken from the old topographical survey done by railway. In case the topographical survey is in local coordinate system SBAS or RTK or local DGPS is to be used to ensure the required positional accuracy of final orthophoto. Page 4 of 8 ss drone survey_uiatines v3 09.20.2017a 5 drone survey_puidelines -v.3 stereo photogrammetry Acrial-Triangulation of the images in the 3D system to ensure accurate positional accuracy (Aerial Triangulation represents the mathematical process of establishing precise and accurate relationships between the individual image & Ground). Generation of digital terrain model (DTM) in stereo photogrammetry workstation to ensure correct ground height for Ortho rectification process. Orthophoto shall be developed by process of Orthophoto rectification using the corrected DTM * Important Major features including Track, level crossing, Important/Major/Minor Bridges, LHS, ROB/RUB, Stations, yard, depot, Buildings @ Structures, Land, encroachments, roads, etc. on and along the railway line should be clearly visible, free from distortions. * Orthophoto should be free from smear, wrap, hot spots and stretch area, * Orthophoto should be radiometrically (contrast color) and geometrically corrected to enable adjacent image tiles to be displayed simultaneously without obvious distinctions between them. * Seasonal and temporal differences should not show differences across image joining lines. * Seamline editing should be done to minimize the temporal tone effect. * Orthophoto should be superimposed on the Google Earth/Bhuvan for checking the relative and absolute accuracy and report of comparison to be prepared for at least 5 point for each KM. Development of GIS database, capturing of the assets as per Annexure-1. GIS database creation in OGC compliant format with the attribute coding as per standard in existing Track Management Systems (TMS) for better linkage to GIS Map like Google, Bhuvan etc (as per Annexure-1) Final output should meet the positional accuracy <=3 m Output: Raw Images (jpg format) (2 em GSD) Page 5 of 8 9.202017,Final scaled and Geopositioned Orthophoto Tiles in geotiff format for cach 500 m of 2 cm resolution and resampled at 5 cm GSD. edd iii) Final scaled and Geopositioned Orthotiles in jpg & Sid compres format of 2 cm resolution and resampled at 5 cm GSD. iv) Final scaled and Geopositioned Orthomosiac in jpg & Sid format for each 5 km. v) Map file compatible to CAD/GIS in .shp format duly linked with attributes of assets, vi) Quality Control Report for Positional Accuracy Assessment: Coordinates to be picked for at least 5 well defined assets in 1 km Jength from google and same to be measured on the Orthophoto for coordinate comparison. The difference between these values should be <=3 m. 3. Aerial Videography 3.1, Seope of work: Monitoring of under construction projects, reconnaissance of proposed railway route, site monitoring in case of specific incident/accident and general site overview, etc. 3.2. Frequency: As per requirement 3.3. Low Altitude Aerial Recording Low altitude Aerial Video and images are to be taken for whole length including right of way (ROW). All the Video & Photographs should be precisely geo-referenced by GPS & Glonass. It is required that the relevant routes, areas and features are clearly visible in the output video after processing. To make the output more informative important annotations should be super imposed on the output such as Coordinates, name or number of feature, kilometers, etc for effective monitoring and appreciation. System should be capable of recording running video upto speed of 50 km/h. It should be capable of capturing stationary video, Running video recording should be preferably in speed range of 20-25 km/h. 3.4. Data Acquisition Oblique aerial videography to be done with an angle of 45 degree - 30 degree or as per best practices (for best result). High resolution digital camera capable of collecting GPS & Glonass geo-tagged 4K quality video & high resolution images fitted on 3-axis gimbal (Pitch, roll, yaw) to be used for stable and clear data acquisition quality. Very low altitude flight height of about 20-100 M as per requirement should be used for clear details capture. Height and angle of recording can be raised for special locations. Page 6of 8 5. drone survey. guidetines v3 9,10.2017Major structures and construction works also need to be captured from different angles by keeping UAV stationary for detailed monitoring, Recording should be done in increasing chainage only. ‘The UAV system should have live video/picture available at control station (FPV- First Person Video) to capture the relevant project details precisely with right context. a) Photographic Conditions i) Ground must be free of fog, haze, dust, and smoke. ii) Data to be collected in good light conditions. b) Image Quality i) Raw video should be of 4K resolution with geotagging. ii) Should be Clear and sharp in detail. iii) No “warping” should be there in video and image. No “image smear” or “stretched” area should exist on images. iv) No inconsistencies should be there in tone and density between adjacent video tiles. v) Must be radiometrically and geometrically corrected to enable adjacent image tiles to be displayed simultaneously without obvious distinctions between them. vi) Seasonal and temporal differences should not show differences across image joining lines. 3.5. Processing + All the high resolution videos and photos to be joined using their geographical coordinates to prepare a continuous seamless Geotagged Aerial Video. Railway will provide file containing the list of assets such as bridge, level crossing, stations, ete. along the alignment for the corridor/area of interest being recorded. This file is to be used for annotations of the important structures ete to make the output more informative. Other information such as IR logo, zone, division, station, height of video capture, date and time of recording, kilometer chainage, any other annotation as desired by railways be marked in video. Facility to upload & link image /Drawings/other files ete and linkage to GIS Map like Google, Bhuvan etc with overlay/sync facility should be available. 3.6. Output: a) Raw 4K quality Videos with Geotagged files. b) Merged Seamless Geo-tagged Video of 1920X1080 format (Full HD) resolution with all annotations. c})_ Low resolutions video for on-line viewing in 640X480 format (SD) d) Image/Drawing file duly linked with Video/Image (fly mode}. Page 7 of 8 s_drone survey guidelines v3 9.302017,Annexure-1 List of Assets & Features (Only for Open Line} [GIs | TMS Asset Remarks / Attribute | | Layer | Feature Code/ Layer No | Name Data | ID L Type | 1. [KM Post SYM _| To be taken | Km no. (alphanumeric) 2. | OHE Mast/ TP SYM | from CRIS | no. (alpha numeric) 3. | Point & Crossing SYM | at the time | To be marked at SRJ, = of P&C no. 4, | Level Crossing ___[S¥M_| processing [C/L of LC, LC no. 5. | Switch Expansion Joint_| SYM C/L of SEJ, LWR no. 6. _| Buffer Rails SYM C/L, LWR no. 7. | Bridge (Important & SYM Bridge. no., Spans, major) Type- Steel/Girder/Arch/PS C, etc. |_8.__| Bridge (Minor) sYM C/L, Bridge no., type 9. | Road Over Bridge (ROB) _| SYM C/L, ne. 10. | RUB/LHS SYM C/T, 7 no./Station/Remark ii. [FOB C/L,Station, no. 12._| Curve TIP:, TTP2, curve no. 13._| Tunnel Tunnel no. : 14. | Cutting Any remark 15. | Station, Halt, Block SYM C/L, Stn. Code, full Hut/IBS 7 station name 16. | Cabin ‘SYM c/L, Cabin no. : : A/B/East/ North, ete. 17._| Signal __| S¥M Signal No. 18. | Huts (Station area), SYM Relay/OFC/Auto (In Station or Automatic 2 Signaling section) 19. | MTRC/ Microwave SYM ID no. Towers 20. | Electrical Crossings SYM Name (Over Head) 21. [SP SYM Sectioning post name. 22. | SSP SYM Sub-Sectioning post _ name _| 23, | Traction Substation SYM Name (rss) ___| - 24. | Sub- station (Electrical) | SYM Name 25. | Others sYM Details to be mentioned 26. | Others ‘SYM Details to be L - mentioned Note: C/L - Central Line 9.202017 Page 8 of 8 drone survey guidelines v3