Simple Method for Cost-Effective Informal Building Monitoring

Unplanned development and informal settlements are typical characteristics of megacities not only in developing countries but also in many developed countries, and they have considerable impact on the environment and on multiple human activities. Thus, development of an automated, robust, cost-effective, and quick procedure for informal building monitoring is of great value. This paper introduces a simple strategy based on a change detection algorithm intended for application in Greece. Several internally published methods for change detection are presented prior to presenting the proposed strategy. The results of two application tests in the greater area of Athens in the Attica region of Greece are presented and compared with the results of the commercial package, Feature Analyst™. The results of the proposed application are discussed and further research is proposed.