Embedding user-generated content into oblique airborne photogrammetry-based 3D city model

ABSTRACT

Oblique airborne photogrammetry-based three-dimensional (3D) city model (OAP3D) provides a spatially continuous representation of urban landscapes that encompasses buildings, road networks, trees, bushes, water bodies, and topographic features. OAP3D is usually present in the form of a group of unclassified triangular meshes under a multi-resolution data structure. Modifying such a non-separable landscape constitutes a daunting task because manual mesh editing is normally required. In this paper, we present a systematic approach for easily embedding user-generated content into OAP3D. We reduce the complexity of OAP3D modification from a 3D mesh operation to a two-dimensional (2D) raster operation through the following workflow: (1) A region of interest (ROI) is selected to cover the area that is intended to be modified for accommodating user-defined content. (2) Spatial interpolation using a set of manually controlled elevation samples is employed to generate a user-defined digital surface model (DSM), which is used to reform the ROI surface. (3) User-generated objects, for example, artistically painted road textures, procedurally generated water effects, and manually created 3D building models, are overlaid onto the reformed ROI.

KEYWORDS:

• Oblique airborne photogrammetry
• 3D city model
• 2D editing
• user-generated content

Acknowledgments

This research was supported and funded by the Foundation for Young Scientists of the State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science (15RC-08), the Key Knowledge Innovative Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX2 EW 318), the National Key Technology R&D Program of China (2014ZX10003002), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41371387).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported and funded by the Foundation for Young Scientists of the State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science: [grant number 15RC-08]; the Key Knowledge Innovative Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences: [grant number KZCX2 EW 318]; the National Key Technology R&D Program of China: [grant number 2014ZX10003002]; and the National Natural Science Foundation of China: [grant number 41371387].