Understanding Spot Size 3 DSCANNING

S everal features of a laser scanner contribute to the level of defi nition it is capable of achieving in a high-defi nition survey. This article provides insight into spot size, as I have found that many professionals do not fully understand or appreciate the important subtleties of this feature. As reported in an earlier article (Professional Surveyor Magazine, February 2005), several features of a scanner contribute to the level of defi nition or resolution that can be achieved via the data it collects. Since the greatest differentiating technical feature of a laser scanner, compared to traditional survey tools, is the detail it can collect, it helps to clearly understand these key contributing features: