UAV Terms

Familiarize yourself with these Common UAV Terms.

Anisotropic. Directionally dependent perspective; surfaces do not appear the same from all angles.

Depth of Field (DoF). The distance between the sharply focused closest and farthest objects; depth is determined by aperture size.

• Larger aperture = smaller/shallower depth of field
• Smaller aperture = larger/deeper depth of field

Ground Control Points (GCP). Reliably identified xyz surface coordinates used to precisely align a project to a known coordinate system; common for ground captures with insufficient GPS.

Imager. Device used to capture photos (camera).

NADIR. Vertical, top-down; lens is perpendicular to the capture.

Oblique. At an angle (any, just as long as not perpendicular); allows for a more extensive ground capture

Orthogonal. Involves right angles; linear.

Point of Interest (POI). Point programmed into the flight which the UAV automatically turns toward when flying between waypoints; typically allows for accurate observation of a ground-based structure.

Prime Lens. Lens with a fixed focal length; opposite of a zoom lens, which has a varying focal length. Related common terms include primary focal length and FFL.

UAV. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.

UAS. Unmanned Aircraft System.

Waypoint. Positional points that define the flight path (that is, the UAV flies from waypoint-to-waypoint).