3D Survey with Apple LiDAR Sensor—Test and Assessment for Architectural and Cultural Heritage

Abstract

The documentation and metric knowledge of architectural and cultural heritage is becoming an increasingly important need, especially concerning the state of degradation of some historical assets and the associated required interventions. In this context, the metric documentation of the investigated heritage becomes fundamental for a complete knowledge of the asset in order to support architects and engineers in the restoration process. Recently, methods and geomatic instrumentation have been developed for the survey of cultural heritage aiming at optimizing costs and time. Apple has integrated into its devices a LiDAR sensor capable of providing a 3D model of spaces and objects. The present paper aims to investigate the potential of this sensor for the production of 3D models of cultural heritage assets in terms of accuracy and applicability. Consistently, four apps developed for the generation of point clouds for five case studies related to architectural-cultural heritage assets have been tested. We used Polycam, Sitescape, 3D Scanner and Scaninverse. The results obtained allow us to conclude that the Apple LiDAR sensor can be used for the creation of 3D models for applications and metric documentation of architectural and cultural heritage that are not particularly complex in form and texture.