3001 Inc. is the first to take advantage of Leica Geosystems’ new LIDAR Upgrade Program. The program includes several high-value performance upgrades that bring older ALS40 models to the state-of-the-art configuration of newer systems. The dense, balanced scan patterns offered by upgraded systems provide additional capability to create high-resolution elevation models. The new automatic roll stabilization feature also eliminates the need to "give up" part of each flight line’s swath to aircraft roll, particularly in high-density LIDAR work, where roll-inducing turbulence is a common problem.

3001’s existing Leica ALS40 Airborne Laser Scanner system was updated to work off the latest version of ALS40 post-processing software and provide multi-return intensity capture, greatly increased pulse and scan rates. Steve Hebert, Senior Vice President, 3001, stated, “The high density data offered by our upgraded system greatly increases the quality of the raw data. This further enhances the performance of ELVIS (Enhanced LIDAR Visual Interactive System), our proprietary editing technology, and has significantly improved our end products, delighting our customers.”

Ron Roth, ALS40 Product Manager, Leica Geosystems, GIS & Mapping Division, added, “In keeping with Leica Geosystems’ objective to protect customer investments and competitive edge, the ALS40 was designed to allow simple incorporation of a variety of technical improvements. As LIDAR technology moves forward, we are supplying our customers with the highest quality systems and support.”

The Leica LIDAR Upgrade Program is currently available to ALS40 customers worldwide. Key components of the upgrade package include:

• High-speed scan optics package, allowing scanning speeds 2040 percent faster than competing systems, while maintaining flexibility to fly at altitudes over 3000 m above ground
• User-selectable maximum range limits, allowing higher pulse rates (up to 45 kHz) at lower flying heights
• Multi-return intensity capture with user-selectable range/intensity modes, allowing collection of radiometric data, day or night, for up to three return reflections from each outbound laser pulse
• Adaptive roll compensation, allowing users to minimize side overlap between flight lines