Aerial roof estimation systems and methods
Methods and systems for roof estimation are described. Example embodiments include a roof estimation system, which generates and provides roof estimate reports annotated with indications of the size, geometry, pitch and/or orientation of the roof sections of a building. Generating a roof estimate report may be based on one or more aerial images of a building. In some embodiments, generating a roof estimate report of a specified building roof may include generating a three-dimensional model of the roof, and generating a report that includes one or more views of the three-dimensional model, the views annotated with indications of the dimensions, area, and/or slope of sections of the roof. This abstract is provided to comply with rules requiring an abstract, and it is submitted with the intention that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.
1. A system, comprising:
a computing system storing software instructions that when executed cause the computing system to:
receive a first aerial image of a building having a roof;
receive a second aerial image of the building having the roof, the first and second aerial images of the building having been taken independent of each other, the first and second aerial images of the building providing different views of the roof from each other;
calibrate at least one of the first and second aerial images of the building using calibration information received from a calibration module;
correlate, without using a preexisting three-dimensional model of the building, the first aerial image of the building with the second aerial image of the building, the correlating employing one or more image processing technique to identify vertexes, edges, or other features of the roof to register pairs of points on the first and second aerial images of the building, each pair of points corresponding to a same point on the roof depicted in each of the first and second aerial images of the building;
generate, without using a preexisting three-dimensional model of the building, based at least in part on the correlation of the first and second aerial images of the building, a three-dimensional model of the roof that includes a plurality of planar roof sections that each have a corresponding pitch, area, and edges;
determine a pitch of a plurality of the planar roof sections of the roof; and
generate a roof estimate report that includes at least one top plan view of the three-dimensional model annotated with numerical indications of the determined pitch.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first aerial image depicts a top plan view of the roof.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second aerial image depicts an oblique perspective view of the roof.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first aerial image and the second aerial image are not a stereoscopic pair.
5. The system of claim 1 , having software instructions that when executed cause the computing system to:
receive a third aerial image of the building having the roof, the third aerial image depicting a different view of the roof than the first aerial image and the second aerial image; and
correlate the first aerial image with the third aerial image; and
wherein generating the three-dimensional model of the roof is based further at least in part on the correlation of the first and third aerial images.
6. The system of claim 5 , wherein the third aerial image depicts another oblique perspective view of the roof.
7. The system of claim 1 , having software instructions that when executed cause the computing system to:
determine a direction of the pitch for each of the plurality of sections of the roof for which a pitch was determined.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the roof estimate report includes the determined direction of the pitch for each of the plurality of sections of the roof for which a pitch was determined.
9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the roof estimate report includes an image of the building and one or more line drawings of the three-dimensional model.
10. The system of claim 1 , having software instructions that when executed cause the computing system to:
receive a location of the building; and
query an imagery database for the first aerial image and the second aerial image based on the location of the building.
11. The system of claim 1 , wherein generating the three-dimensional model of the roof is based further at least in part on receiving operator indications of one or more features of the roof.
12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the features of the roof include one or more of a valley, a ridge, a hip, a vertex, a plane, and an edge.
13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the three-dimensional model of the roof includes roof attributes associated with the planar roof sections, the roof attributes comprising one or more area of the planar roof sections and/or one or more length of edges of the planar roof sections.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the roof estimate report includes one or more of the roof attributes.
15. The system of claim 1 , wherein the three-dimensional model of the roof includes roof information associated with the planar roof sections, the roof information comprising one or more of: a location of an edge of a planar roof section as in a valley of the roof; a location of an edge of a planar roof section as on a ridge of the roof; an orientation of a planar roof section; a perimeter dimension of a planar roof section; a perimeter dimension of the roof; an outline of a planar roof section; and an outline of the roof.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the roof estimate report includes the roof information associated with the planar roof sections.