A BLOCK ADJUSTMENT SYSTEM USING EXTERNAL NAVIGATION DATA

This thesis presents a method for incorporating information from external devices in a photogrammetric bundle block adjustment. The specific devices included are an inertial navigation system and a precision barometric pressure sensor.;The coplanarity and the collinearity conditions are compared as to their relative suitability for forming the basis equations for the least squares solution. The difference between the two formulations lies in a weight matrix. In rare cases, the inversion required for the collinearity weight matrix may fail; meaning that the solution will fail. In contrast, the weight matrix for the coplanarity solution would result in a zero weight for the measurements that would cause the collinearity solution to fail.;The basic mathematics of inertial navigation are explained along with some examples of the types of errors that inertial systems exhibit. Several means of post-flight processing to remove the effects of the errors and the resulting accuracies are discussed.;The processing system developed employs the concepts of data base management. Linked data files are established to allow rapid access to all parameters.;The least squares equations for the bundle adjustment were developed from the coplanarity condition in a manner that results in a simpler implementation than the conventional methods. The improved implementation arises from a more rigorous and simpler formulation for the derivative of the rotation matrix. The commonly used form of the rotation matrix derivative is shown to be incomplete.;The system is completely general in the type of control information that may be employed. For example it utilizes waterline leveling information with no restrictions on the number of photographs that may be effectively tied together by a single body of water. The control information is entered with a weight matrix to allow for one, two or three known elements.;The results of system tests are shown and discussed. It appears from the results that there is a difference in the accuracy of the inertial data in these tests as compared to previous tests. The data sets processed for these tests however are not felt to be sufficient to provide a definitive analysis.