Stockpile Measurement Solution: A Concise Guide

This guide outlines a user-friendly stockpile measurement solution, covering recommended equipment, key tools, workflows, and volume calculation methods—designed to meet the needs of both large-scale and small/indoor stockpile scenarios.

The solution offers tailored equipment options based on project scale:

Large-scale stockpiles: SLAM200 or SLAM200E handheld LiDAR scanners (ranging capabilities: 300m and 120m respectively). They can pair with the DMT200 accessory for DJI drones (M300/M350/M400) to enable multi-angle aerial data collection, delivering complete point clouds and safe, accurate measurements. Both models output real-time colorized point clouds with absolute coordinates.

Indoor/small-scale stockpiles: SLAM1000 or SLAM2000 (cost-effective, 70m ranging capability). Key differences: SLAM1000 requires post-processing for point clouds and manual scanning angle adjustment; SLAM2000 supports real-time point cloud output, has a rotating laser module, and works with the SLAM INSTANT APP for on-site volume calculation.

This Android-based mobile tool simplifies real-time measurement with core features:

Loads local/external LAS files, folders, and project files (including video data).

Supports point cloud preview, visualization, and 3D roaming (combining video and point clouds).

Offers measurement functions: distance, area (rectangular/polygon), 3D triangle, angle, and earthwork volume.

Generates orthophotos (exportable as TIFF) that can overlay maps for intuitive scanning position display and direct on-photo measurements.

Site Survey: Assess the environment and plan scanning routes to ensure full stockpile coverage.

Equipment Assembly: Assemble the handheld scanner per its model instructions.

Data Scanning: Follow the planned route to scan all sides of the stockpile; avoid pedestrians/moving objects near the stockpile to maintain accuracy.

Point Cloud Processing: SLAM200/SLAM200E/SLAM2000 output real-time point clouds (relative accuracy ≤3cm) for direct calculation; SLAM1000 requires post-processing.

Volume Calculation: Use either the SLAM INSTANT APP or Smart Point Cloud Software.

Recommended tablet configuration: Snapdragon 8 (Ultimate Edition) CPU, 16GB RAM, 512GB+ storage.

Step 1: Import data (single LAS file, folder of LAS files, or SLAM project—project imports include video and real-time point clouds).

Step 2: Crop data with a rotatable/scalable clipping box to remove redundant data.

Step 3: Set parameters (sample size, calculation method, reference plane) and click "Calculate" to get volume. Reference plane options: "Plane" (flat ground) or "Fitted Plane" (sloped ground).

4.2 Using Smart Point Cloud Software

Step 1: Process field scan data with SLAMGOPOST (details not included).

Step 2: Load processed LAS/FMI point cloud data.

Step 3: Crop the stockpile point cloud and manually remove noise.

Step 4: Define and save the calculation range as a file.

Step 5: Set parameters: reference plane ("Plane"/"Fitted Plane"/"Complex Surface" for uneven terrain), sampling interval (5–50cm, smaller = higher accuracy), and grid/max edge length (based on data gaps).

Step 6: Calculate volume and export a PDF volume report.