Comparison of UAV LiDAR and photogrammetry approaches for the survey of the Cultural Heritage in challenging conditions

The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for surveying allows to obtain satisfactory results with a lower risk for the operators. This instrument is suitable to carry on-board several sensors for the data acquisition. In the latest years, further to the success of Photogrammetry, also the Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) instrumentation has been conformed to be easily mounted on drones. This work is focused on the comparison of the UAV LiDAR and photogrammetry for the surveying of the Castle of Casalbagliano, part of the Italian Cultural Heritage. The two techniques have been compared on the basis of their point clouds. The parameters which have been taken into account are the overall geometry, the reconstruction of the vegetated areas, and the colour. The pros and cons of the two methods have been discussed, as well as their integration.