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A Beginner's Guide to Mesoscale Survey with Quadrotor-UAV Systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 August 2018

Kyle G. Olson  and
Lynne M. Rouse
Kyle G. Olson*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, 3260 South Street, Rm. 325, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
Lynne M. Rouse
Affiliation:
Eurasian Department, German Archaeological Institute (DAI), Im Dol 2–6, Haus 2, 14195 Berlin, Germany
*
(kols@sas.upenn.edu, corresponding author)
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Abstract

Quadrotor-UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) systems are becoming increasingly ubiquitous in archaeological field research for the production of digital elevation models and orthophoto mosaics of sites, monuments, and landscapes. In order to make up for the lack of suitable imagery to use in a larger project on the landscapes surrounding Bronze Age tell sites in the Murghab delta of eastern Turkmenistan, we developed a protocol for the deployment of out-of-the-box UAV systems to document sites and their immediate environs. This article discusses the fundamentals of aerial survey based on our experience deploying a quadrotor UAV, using examples from our case study of the site of Togolok 1. We argue that the approach we developed is particularly useful for mesoscale survey, between 1 and 5 km2, and is particularly useful for producing technical quality outputs, even by relative newcomers to UAV-based aerial survey.

Los vehículos aéreos no tripulados tipo cuadricóptero se han convertido en populares herramientas en investigaciones de campo arqueológicas para producir modelos digitales de elevación y mosaicos ortofotográficos de sitios, monumentos y paisajes. Con el fin de compensar la falta de imágenes adecuadas para un proyecto sobre los paisajes que rodean los sitios tell de la Edad del Bronce en el delta del Murghab, en el oriente de Turkmenistan, hemos desarrollado un protocolo para el despliegue de vehículos aéreos no tripulados de fácil uso y ensamblaje para registrar sitios arqueológicos y sus alrededores. Este artículo discute los fundamentos de la prospección aérea con base en nuestra experiencia en el despliegue de un cuadricóptero, presentando ejemplos de nuestro estudio de caso en el sitio de Togolok 1. Consideramos que el modelo propuesto es particularmente útil para sondeos a mediana escala, abarcando áreas entre 1 y 5 km2, ya que permite producir resultados técnicos de calidad, incluso por aquellos con poca experiencia en la prospección aérea con vehículos no tripulados.

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Advances in Archaeological Practice , Volume 6 , Issue 4 , November 2018 , pp. 357 - 371
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Copyright 2018 © Society for American Archaeology 

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