Changing Poland roads with LEHMANN+PARTNER

In July 2020, EyeVi’s Sales and Marketing team reached out to the CEO of the subsidiary of LEHMANN+PARTNER in Poland, Michał Maciołek. Our goal was to seize the opportunity to collaborate and combine our advanced technologies so we could improve Poland’s roads and infrastructure.  

The proposal to help shape the future of road infrastructure maintenance by providing EyeVi’s 3D colored point clouds piqued Michal’s interest – and a path forward was forged.  

A persistent problem meets an innovative solution

Before the government and local municipalities can start planning road maintenance works and budgets, they need data. LEHMANN+PARTNER stands out as one of the leading companies that offer road condition data and cost estimations for road infrastructure management.  

Poland has over 420,000 km of road networks of which more than 50,000 km are main roads, including national roads and motorways. The vast distances that need mapping, plus the constant monitoring and repairs required to ensure smooth and safe rides for drivers, would normally necessitate a considerable amount of work, time, and money.

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LEHMANN+PARTNER leads the way

LEHMANN+PARTNER, a member of the international group GINGER, headquartered in France, has several subsidiaries in Germany, UK, and Poland. EyeVi was pleased to assist with LEHMANN’s Polish subsidiary in Konin, providing additional technical solutions and point cloud visualizations. Together, the two companies delivered a comprehensive analysis of a large swath of Poland’s road network.  

LEHMANN+PARTNER Polska offers a variety of road inspection services, such as video documentation of roads, detailed inventory of the infrastructure, inspection and assessment of the road condition, register of bridge facilities, and even data capture of bike infrastructure.  

The company produces its own equipment, named IRIS (Integrated Road Information Scanner), for mobile data capture that is based on high-resolution, photogrammetric calibrated cameras, and a high-end positioning system.  The IRIS system is perfectly complimented by the 3D point clouds that EyeVi provides.

EyeVi’s point clouds complete the big picture

In 2021, LEHMANN+PARTNER and EyeVi collaborated with two projects in Poland and captured over 1000 km of data in the districts of Kętrzyn and Wrocław. EyeVi gave a helping hand with the equipment for point cloud data capture and later with processing and coloring the point clouds. The procedure was simple and efficient.

First, EyeVi's equipment, which includes a 360° camera, a LiDAR scanner, and a GNSS/INS system, was shipped to Poland. Note that while point cloud data can be captured with photogrammetry, EyeVi uses a LiDAR scanner, because this ensures maximum accuracy of the location of each data point.

With EyeVi’s equipment assembled by LEHMANN+PARTNER’s technicians together with the IRIS vehicle, the high-accuracy data capture could begin. After the fieldwork was done, it was sent to EyeVi where the point cloud data was then processed and RGB values were calculated by joining LiDAR data with 360° images. The processed data was then sent back to LEHMANN+PARTNER to be integrated with production processes and final deliverables – ensuring the most precise and comprehensive visualizations and analysis for the client.

Michał Maciołek says one of the benefits of choosing EyeVi for collaboration is that “the hardware was really easy to use, and the support of the EyeVi team was perfect when we needed help.”  Furthermore, “Integration of EyeVi’s system with our IRIS technology allowed us to save lots of time on the road and to optimize the costs”.

Why colored point clouds?

LEHMANN+PARTNER wanted colored point clouds because they serve as 3D models of the road corridor, and when using proper software tools, it is possible to replace costly field inspections with virtual trips that don’t require leaving the office. Furthermore, 3D models can depict more detailed aspects of road infrastructure such as limitations for heavy transport and spatial relationships, including bridge clearances and the height, width, length, and distances between, road signs, road barriers, and fences.  

Having a 3D model of the road infrastructure also comes in handy in the case of safety auditing. For example, using 3D models, it is possible to evaluate the hazard level of tree branches that hang over the street. Another reason for opting for colored point clouds is that they provide data visualizations that are much more accurate than using just raw point clouds, and since the 3D model is a precise copy of the ground truth, it offers a valuable source for data analysis. In addition, it gives the user a quick and easy way of looking at the data and a clear picture of what they are looking at.

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What next?

LEHMANN+PARTNER and EyeVi will certainly continue their collaboration with road data capture. There are already projects in the works and more to come in the future.  

Let’s keep on paving the way for safer and smoother roads in Poland!