Processing of lidar data in ARCGIS PRO:

Geodetics’ and Point Pixel products are used to generate highly accurate and dense LiDAR point
clouds in the standardized LAS file format. With capabilities of up to four returns per beam and a
data rate up to 1000k (points/second) per return – depending on LiDAR sensor used.  Each laser
beam can penetrate through surface-terrain features such as vegetation, high canopy, etc., with the
final return being reflected from the bare-Earth surface.

Digital Elevation Model (DEM), Digital Surface Model (DSM) and Digital Terrain Model (DTM) are
three commonly implemented geospatial features generated with UAV mapping systems. Each data
product delivers different elevation values as each model uses different methodologies. Elevation
values from a LiDAR point cloud come from features including bare-ground, power lines, tree
canopies or buildings. Selecting the right elevation model for your project can be challenging that is
why Geodetics offers the following three simplified, but common interpretations for these data
products:

 A DEM (Digital Elevation Model) Represents the bare-Earth surface, removing all natural and built
features;
A DSM (Digital Surface Model) captures both the natural and built/artificial features of the
environment, as shown below;
A DTM (Digital Terrain Model) typically augments a DEM, by including vector features of the natural
terrain, such as rivers and ridges. A DTM may be interpolated to generate a DEM, but not vice versa.

For most LiDAR applications, focus is placed on the DEM and DSM as defined above, while DTMs are
more applicable for GIS and cartographic representations and will not be discussed here.

Digital Elevation Model (DEM):

DEMs are of critical importance in areas such as land-use planning, infrastructural project
management, soil science, hydrology and flow-direction studies. Across greater spatial scales, their
use is key for the contouring of topographic and relief maps (as shown in the figures below).
Because DSMs represent the bare-Earth and all its above-ground features, their use is widely applied
in fields such as urban planning. For example, investigating how a proposed building would affect the
views of residents and businesses, power line corridor inspections and aviation planning.

Once accurate classification techniques have been applied to the LiDAR point cloud, clean ground
points can be targeted and isolated from the remainder of the dataset. A DEM is created by
generating a mesh from the LiDAR ground points using one of several interpolation algorithms to
create a jointed fabric which accurately represents the real-world ground model. Generating a DEM
from a LiDAR dataset alone can uncover hidden archaeological or geological features, which may
have been masked from aerial view or photogrammetric analysis by naturally occurring terrain
features.

Several point-cloud processing software packages offer DEM/DSM generation capabilities, allowing
the user to create the surface model required for their project. The only prerequisite for this is a
classified LAS point cloud file. The procedure is typically straightforward and accurate, provided the
LAS file has been accurately classified. After creating an elevation model, several editing, repairing
and smoothing algorithms can be applied to remove inconsistencies, sharp edges and provide a
more visually appealing result. The full process can be performed in a matter of hours. User input is
minimal, only requiring some basic model parameters such as curvature weight, smoothing iteration
etc. Once created, the model can be coloured, and various layers can be toggled on/off.

Digital Surface Model (DSM):

The dimensions of the DSMs were reduced to make data management easier, and to have quicker
calculation time in the software when generating the 3D city model. A mask of approximately 500 x
500 m was created in ArcGIS and all the data were clipped with it. Thus, the final data for this study
consisted of three DSMs with the same grid resolution as specified earlier but having a dimension of
500 x 500 m and reduced numbers of points. The map was also changed in dimension, like the DSMs,
and the number of buildings was reduced to 106, but preserving all the initial attributes. The
orthophoto was only changed in its dimension (as shown in the figure below)
Block Diagram:

WORKING:
SLOPE OF DEM:
Slope represents the rate of change of elevation for each digital elevation model (DEM) cell. It's the
first derivative of a DEM.(as shown in figure below)

By default, the slope appears as a grayscale image. You can add the Colormap function to specify a
particular colour scheme or allow the person viewing the mosaic to modify the symbology with their
own colour scheme.

This Slope function uses an accelerated ATan function. It is six times faster, and the approximation
error is always less than 0.3 degrees.