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Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment

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A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This special issue belongs to the section "Engineering Remote Sensing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2021) | Viewed by 25623

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Prof. Dr. Agnieszka Leśniak

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Faculty of Civil Engineering, Cracow University of Technology, 31-155 Kraków, Poland
Interests: supporting decisions in construction; delays in construction projects; risk assessment in construction; project cost estimation; tendering and bidding in construction; using artificial neural networks in construction management; building procurement
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Prof. Maria Mrówczyńska

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Institute of Civil Engineering, University of Zielona Góra, Zielona Góra, Poland
Interests: surveying monitoring; engineering geodesy; artificial intelligence; spatial planning; support of decision-making processes
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Dr. Marta Skiba

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Institute of Civil Engineering, University of Zielona Góra, Zielona Góra, Poland
Interests: sustainability, sustainable development, architecture, investment, urban planning, energy, urban, sustainability, urban development, built, environment, land use planning; environmental protection policy; urban policy
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Dr. Małgorzata Sztubecka

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Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, UTP University of Science and Technology in Bydgoszcz, Av. S. Kaliskiego 7, 85-796 Bydgoszcz, Poland
Interests: environment; environmental analysis; acoustic climate, perception; surveying
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues

Describing space using various cartographic methods is increasingly being replaced by achievements in the geoinformation. Geoinformation is the definition, reading, and imaging of all relationships that occur between objects and phenomena in the described space.

Intelligent solutions in the field of geoinformation allow the development of innovative methods, processes, and technologies used to obtain spatial information in the requirements of:

- non-invasive measurement systems;

- mobile data acquisition;

- mobile GIS systems;

- surveying and measurement and control systems;

- methods for obtaining and spatial imaging data;

- modern solutions in construction, architecture, and spatial planning.

Innovative applications of geoinformation mainly concern smart city systems, intelligent transport systems, navigation, geodesy and remote sensing, environmental monitoring and assessment, as well as identification and optimization of natural resources.

This Special Edition is primarily dedicated to the publication of selected articles related to the SCEGeo Conference, which concern a comprehensive and current overview of the most recent research activities related to the use of geoinformation techniques to analyze problems, including the following issues:

- Monitoring and control systems and measurement systems in engineering issues;

- Monitoring and issues of sustainable development in engineering activities;

- Lidar and laser scanning;

- Communication construction and cubature;

- Change detection;

- Data fusion and data assimilation;

- Network and installation;

- Spatial information systems for the needs of sustainable development.

Prof. Agnieszka Leśniak
Prof. Maria Mrówczyńska
Prof. Marta Skiba
Dr. Małgorzata Sztubecka
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Remote Sensing is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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20 pages, 6638 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of Geodetic Measuring Methods for Reliable Evaluation of Static Load Test Results of Foundation Piles

by Zbigniew Muszyński and Jarosław Rybak

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(16), 3082; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13163082 - 5 Aug 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2349

Abstract

Geodetic measuring methods are widely used in the course of various geotechnical works. The main purpose is usually related to the location in space, geometrical dimensions, settlements, deflections, and other forms of displacements and their consequences. This study focuses on the application of selected surveying methods in static load tests (SLTs) of foundation piles. Basic aspects of the SLT are presented in the introductory section, together with the explanation of the authors’ motivation behind the novel (but already sufficiently tested) application of remote methods introduced to confirm, through inverse analysis, the load applied to the pile head under testing at every stage of its loading. Materials and methods are described in the second section in order to provide basic information on the test site and principles of the SLT method applied. The case study shows the methodology of displacement control in the particular test, which is described in light of a presented review of geodetic techniques for displacement control, especially terrestrial laser scanning and robotic tacheometry. The geotechnical testing procedure, which is of secondary importance for the current study, is also introduced in order to emphasize the versatility of the proposed method. Special attention is paid to inverse analysis (controlling of the pile loading force on the basis of measured deflections, and static calculations by means of standard structural analysis and the finite element method (FEM)) as a tool to raise the credibility of the obtained SLT results. The present case study from just one SLT, instrumented with various geodetic instrumentation, shows the results of a real-world dimensions test. The obtained variability of the loading force within a range of 15% (depending on real beam stiffness) proves good prospects for the application of the proposed idea in practice. The results are discussed mainly in light of the previous authors’ experience with the application of remote techniques for reliable displacement control. As only a few references could be found (mainly by private communication), both the prospects for new developments using faster and more accurate instruments as well as the need for the validation of these findings on a larger number of SLTs (with a very precise definition of beam stiffness) are underlined in the final remarks. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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17 pages, 8442 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of TLS Remote Sensing Data in the Analysis of the Load-Carrying Capacity of Structural Steel Elements

by Daniel Wałach and Grzegorz Piotr Kaczmarczyk

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(14), 2759; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13142759 - 14 Jul 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2557

Abstract

This paper proposes the use of terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) measurements together with finite element method (FEM) numerical modeling to assess the current technical condition. The main aim of the paper was to evaluate the effect of point cloud size reduction on the quality of the geometric model and the ability to represent the corrosion level in assessing its load-carrying capacity. In this study, a standard scanning was performed on a historical object and a point cloud of a selected corroded element was generated. In order to further process the data, gradual reductions were made in the number of points from which meshes representing the geometry of the selected beam were created. Inaccuracy analyses of the meshes generated on the reduced point clouds were performed. Numerical analysis was then conducted for the selected mesh generated from the reduced point cloud. The results identified the locations of maximum stresses. The presented analysis showed that by developing the presented measurement and computational technique, laser scanning can be used to determine the degree of corrosion of hard-to-reach steel elements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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16 pages, 10752 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessment of Morphology Changes of the End Moraine of the Werenskiold Glacier (SW Spitsbergen) Using Active and Passive Remote Sensing Techniques

by Tadeusz Głowacki and Damian Kasza

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(11), 2134; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13112134 - 28 May 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2480

Abstract

Wedel Jarlsberg Land in Svalbard is a region with a varied periglacial landscape. In the mountains and in the valleys, the climate is polar with permafrost. During the summer, the near-surface ground layer thaws. The Werenskiold Glacier, together with its end moraine, are located in the central part of this area. The rate of morphological changes observed within the moraine varies in time and space, and depends on the environmental conditions. This study investigates four periods of archival aerial photogrammetry measurements (1936, 1960, 1990, and 2011) performed for the end moraine of the glacier. The long-term analysis was also based on a direct GNSS RTK survey from 2015. Over a period of almost 80 years, more than 14 million m³ of rock and ice material disappeared from the end moraine of the glacier (an average of approximately 200 thousand m³/year). Analyses of the dynamic surface changes over one year (2015) were performed with the use of synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR). The time interval between images was in this case 12 days and covered (simultaneously in each scene) the entire investigated area. In this case, the analysis demonstrated that over a period of only 4 months, the moraine lost 200 thousand m³ of material (approximately two thousand m³/day), which is equivalent to the entire annual mass loss of the moraine. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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27 pages, 9633 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Coupling of Dual Channel Waveform ALS and Sonar for Investigation of Lake Bottoms and Shore Zones

by Jarosław Chormański, Barbara Nowicka, Aleksander Wieckowski, Maurycy Ciupak, Jacek Jóźwiak and Tadeusz Figura

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(9), 1833; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13091833 - 8 May 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2983

Abstract

In this work, we proposed to include remote sensing techniques as a part of the methodology for natural lake bottom mapping, with a focus on the littoral zone. Due to the inaccessibility of this zone caused by dense vegetation, measurements of the lake bottom and the coastline are also difficult to perform using traditional methods. The authors of this paper present, discuss and verify the applicability of remote sensing active sensors as a tool for measurements in the shore zone of a lake. The single-beam Lowrance HDS-7 ComboGPS echosounder with an 83/200 kHz transducer and a two-beam LiDAR RIEGL VQ-1560i-DW scanner have been used for reservoir bottom measurements of two neighboring lakes, which differ in terms of water transparency. The research has found a strong correlation between both sonar and LiDAR for mapping the bottom depth in a range up to 1.6 m, and allowed LiDAR mapping of approximately 20% of the highly transparent lake, but it has not been found to be useful in water with low transparency. In the light of the conducted research, both devices, sonar and LiDAR, have potential for complementary use by fusing both methods: the sonar for mapping of the sublittoral and the pelagic zone, and the LiDAR for mapping of the littoral zone, overcoming limitation related to vegetation in the lake shore zone. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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20 pages, 7870 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Landslide Hazard Assessment Map as an Element Supporting Spatial Planning: The Flysch Carpathians Region Study

by Izabela Skrzypczak, Wanda Kokoszka, Dawid Zientek, Yongjing Tang and Janusz Kogut

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(2), 317; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13020317 - 18 Jan 2021

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 4305

Abstract

Landslides and rock falls are among the many phenomena that have an impact on sustainable construction and infrastructure safety. The main causes of landslides are natural meteorological and hydrological phenomena. In building design and construction, environmental monitoring by identifying geotechnical hazards must be taken into account, as appropriate hazard assessment contributes to ensuring future construction safety. The Carpathian region in southern Poland is particularly predisposed to landslide formation. This may be favored by the nature of the shapes associated with the high and steep slopes of the region’s valleys. Another reason for concern is the flysch geological structure, which is characterized by alternating layers of water-permeable sandstones and poorly permeable shales, clays, and marls. Furthermore, the presence of a quaternary weathering cover makes the geological structure more susceptible to landslide processes and tectonic formations. The paper presents the results of a study whose aim was to elaborate a detailed landslide hazard map for a selected area in the Polish Carpathians, using statistical methods. The approach is based on the Hellwig method, which seems particularly useful in the assessment of susceptibility and landslide hazards on a local scale for a relatively small area. A two-stage study was conducted. The first stage of the research involved the creation of a database associated with environmental parameters and triggering factors, whereas the second stage consisted of the adoption of weights for seven thematic sections and their special features on the basis of expert knowledge. The hazard map developed as a result was compared to the mapping made using the weight-of-evidence method. The proposed data normalization method allows the use and analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data collected from various sources. The advantage of this method is the simple calculation procedure. A large-scale (1:2000) map might be used to assess the landslide hazard for specific cadastral units. Such a map becomes the basis for municipal spatial planning and may be able to influence investment decisions. Detailed landslide hazard maps are crucial for more precise risk evaluation for specific cadastral units. This, in turn, allows one to reduce serious economic and social losses, which might be the future results of landslides. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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20 pages, 10234 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mapping Carbon Monoxide Pollution of Residential Areas in a Polish City

by Janusz Kwiecień and Kinga Szopińska

Remote Sens. 2020, 12(18), 2885; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12182885 - 6 Sep 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 4709

Abstract

Road traffic is among the main sources of atmospheric pollution in cities. Maps of pollutants are based on geostatistical models using a digital model of the city along with traffic parameters allowing for ongoing analyses and prediction of the condition of the environment. The aim of the work was to determine the size of areas at risk of carbon monoxide pollution derived from road traffic along with determining the number of inhabitants exposed to excessive CO levels using geostatistical modeling on the example of the city of Bydgoszcz, a city in the northern part of Poland. The COPERT STREET LEVEL program was used to calculate CO emissions. Next, based on geostatistical modelling, a prediction map of CO pollution (kg/year) was generated, along with determining the level of CO concentration (mg/m³/year). The studies accounted for the variability of road sources as well as the spatial structure of the terrain. The results are presented for the city as well as divided into individual housing estates. The level of total carbon monoxide concentration for the city was 5.18 mg/m³/year, indicating good air quality. Detailed calculation analyses showed that the level of air pollution with CO varies in the individual housing estates, ranging from 0.08 to 35.70 mg/m³/year. Out of the 51 studied residential estates, the limit value was exceeded in 10, with 45% of the population at risk of poor air quality. The obtained results indicate that only detailed monitoring of the level of pollution can provide us with reliable information on air quality. The results also show in what way geostatistical tools can be used to map the spatial variability of air pollution in a city. The obtained spatial details can be used to improve estimated concentration based on interpolation between direct observation and prediction models. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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15 pages, 7092 KiB

Open AccessArticle

On the Use of the OptD Method for Building Diagnostics

by Czesław Suchocki, Wioleta Błaszczak-Bąk, Marzena Damięcka-Suchocka, Marcin Jagoda and Andrea Masiero

Remote Sens. 2020, 12(11), 1806; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12111806 - 3 Jun 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2432

Abstract

Terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) measurements can be used to assess the technical condition of buildings and structures; in particular, high-resolution TLS measurements should be taken in order to detect defects in building walls. This consequently results in the creation of a huge amount of data in a very short time. Despite high-resolution measurements typically being needed in certain areas of interest, e.g., to detect cracks, reducing redundant information on regions of low interest is of fundamental importance in order to enable computationally efficient and effective analysis of the dataset. In this work, data reduction is made by using the Optimum Dataset (OptD) method, which allows to significantly reduce the amount of data while preserving the geometrical information of the region of interest. As a result, more points are retained on areas corresponding to cracks and cavities than on flat and homogeneous surfaces. This approach allows for a thorough analysis of the surface discontinuity in building walls. In this investigation, the TLS dataset was acquired by means of the time-of-flight scanners Riegl VZ-400i and Leica ScanStation C10. The results obtained by reducing the TLS dataset by means of OptD show that this method is a viable solution for data reduction in building and structure diagnostics, thus enabling the implementation of computationally more efficient diagnostic strategies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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17 pages, 6513 KiB

Open AccessTechnical Note

Application of the Msplit Estimation Method in the Detection and Dimensioning of the Displacement of Adjacent Planes

by Joanna Janicka, Jacek Rapiński, Wioleta Błaszczak-Bąk and Czesław Suchocki

Remote Sens. 2020, 12(19), 3203; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12193203 - 30 Sep 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2306

Abstract

Building constructions are exposed to various forces and natural phenomena. Some of them are sudden and violent, e.g., an earthquake or heavy rains, causing a displacement of the ground. Other phenomena affect objects on a longer-term, e.g., vibrations caused by daily road traffic. Sometimes, building structures may have defects due to incorrect construction. In any case, if an engineering object shows changes in the relation to its correct geometry or position, deformation and displacement measurements are required. Engineering objects are also monitored during their construction. Nowadays, it is important to perform measurements quickly and with high accuracy. The use of a Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) allows for the required measurement speed and accuracy. This measurement technology allows a large dataset, which can be arbitrarily elaborated, to be obtained. The structure of building objects can include vertices, lines, planes, and other shapes and can be described using mathematical functions. This allows data processing to be automated. In this article, we present the Msplit method as an effective approach to the processing of data obtained as a result of TLS measurements. The proposed approach is new because until now, the Msplit estimation method has not been used to detect adjacent planes in one-point cloud obtained from TLS. The Msplit estimation method allows a functional model to be split into two or more competitive models and thus two or more entities in a point cloud to be estimated simultaneously. Four different objects measured using TLS are presented: two objects representing vertical displacements and two objects representing horizontal displacements. The test results and analysis confirm that the Msplit estimation method can be successfully applied in the detection of adjacent planes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geoinformation Technologies in Civil Engineering and the Environment)

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