Mobile indoor mapping technologies: a review

Abstract

Last developments in terrestrial surveying technologies, regarding both hardware and software, provide the possibility for their application to new interesting uses. Among them, this article focuses on indoor mapping and surveying with mobile devices. The use of these devices implies an improvement in the flexibility of the data acquisition in comparison to the static equivalent. This article analyses and compares the different options for mobile indoor mapping currently in the market, focusing on interesting characteristics for construction and architectural studies, such as physical configuration, weight, sensor type, colouring possibilities and operating time. The aim of this paper is to show the reader the state of the art of the technology, helping to fill the gap of information which exists in this field of technology and to help on the selection of the best option depending on the requirements.