PAN Jiechen, XING Shuai, CAO Jiayin, DAI Mofan, HUANG Gaoshuang, ZHI Lu
[Significance] With rapid advances in remote sensing, surveying and mapping, and autonomous driving technologies, 3D point cloud semantic segmentation, a core technology of digital twin systems, is attracting increasing research attention. Airborne point cloud semantic segmentation is regarded as a key technology for enhancing the automation and intelligence of 3D geographic information systems. [Analysis] Driven by deep learning and sensing technologies such as LiDAR, depth cameras, and 3D laser scanners, point cloud semantic segmentation can automatically classify and accurately recognize large-scale point cloud data through precise feature extraction and efficient model training. However, compared with typical high-density, category-balanced point cloud datasets (e.g., those used in indoor scenes, autonomous driving, or robotics), airborne point clouds present significant challenges in areas such as registration and feature extraction. These challenges stem from their unique characteristics, including large-scale 3D terrain coverage, dynamic platform motion errors, considerable variations in ground-object spatial scales, and complex occlusions. Currently, deep-learning-based airborne point cloud semantic segmentation is still in its early stages. Due to heterogeneous data acquisition methods, varying resolutions, and diverse attribute information, there remains a gap between existing research and practical algorithm deployment. [Progress] This paper provides a comprehensive review of the field, covering adaptive algorithms, datasets, performance metrics, and emerging methods along with their advantages and limitations. It also offers quantitative comparisons with existing technologies, evaluating representative methods in terms of precision and applicability. [Prospect] A thorough analysis suggests that breakthroughs in airborne point cloud semantic segmentation necessitate systematic research innovations across multiple dimensions, including feature representation, multimodal fusion, few-shot learning, algorithm interpretability, and large-scale model benchmarking. These advancements are essential not only for overcoming current bottlenecks in real-world applications but also for establishing robust technical foundations for critical use cases such as digital twin cities and disaster emergency response.