scholarly journals Assessing tree crown volume—a review

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zihui Zhu ◽  
Christoph Kleinn ◽  
Nils Nölke
Keyword(s):  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Forest Biomass ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Pollution Reduction ◽  
Tree Crown ◽  
Crown Volume ◽  
Geometric Solids ◽  
Environmental Functions

Abstract Tree crown volume is a fundamental tree characteristic. It correlates to forest biomass production and most relevant ecosystem and environmental functions, such as carbon sequestration and air pollution reduction. When researching these relationships, it is necessary to clearly define and then quantify tree crown variables in a both accurate and operational manner. In this paper, we review the reported literature on the assessment of tree crown volume. First, we compile the varying definitions of crown volume and other tree crown variables that may be used as inputs to quantify crown volume. Then, we examine the data sources for quantifying these variables, including field measurements, terrestrial photographs, aerial photographs and laser scanning. Furthermore, we compare the published approaches on translating these crown variable measurements into tree crown volume. These approaches include the approximation of simple geometric solids, approaches of computational geometry and voxelization. We also compare the reported accuracies and major challenges of these approaches. From this literature review, the reader may craft a suitable approach for the assessment of crown volume.

Individual Tree Measurement in Tropical Environment using Terrestrial Laser Scanning

2015 ◽  
Vol 73 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Zulkarnain Abdul Rahman ◽  
Zulkepli Majid ◽  
Md Afif Abu Bakar ◽  
Abd Wahid Rasib ◽  
Wan Hazli Wan Kadir
Keyword(s):  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Mean Squared Error ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
Point Clouds ◽  
Tree Crown ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Branch Diameter ◽  
Reference Tree ◽  
Crown Volume ◽  
Tree Branch

Detailed forest inventory and mensuration of individual trees have drawn attention of research society mainly to support sustainable forest management. This study aims at estimating individual tree attributes from high density point cloud obtained by terrestrial laser scanner (TLS). The point clouds were obtained over single reference tree and group of trees in forest area. The reference tree is treated as benchmark since detailed measurements of branch diameter were made on selected branches with different sizes and locations. Diameter at breast height (DBH) was measured for trees in forest. Furthermore tree height, height to crown base, crown volume and tree branch volume were also estimated for each tree. Branch diameter is estimated directly from the point clouds based on semi-automatic approach of model fitting i.e. sphere, ellipse and cylinder. Tree branch volume is estimated based on the volume of the fitted models. Tree height and height to crown base are computed using histogram analysis of the point clouds elevation. Tree crown volume is estimated by fitting a convex-hull on the tree crown. The results show that the Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) of the estimated tree branch diameter does not have a specific trend with branch sizes and number of points used for fitting process. This explains complicated distribution of point clouds over the branches. Overall cylinder model produces good results with most branch sizes and number of point clouds for fitting. The cylinder fitting approach shows significantly better estimation results compared to sphere and ellipse fitting models.   

scholarly journals Towards Tree Green Crown Volume: A Methodological Approach Using Terrestrial Laser Scanning

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1841 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zihui Zhu ◽  
Christoph Kleinn ◽  
Nils Nölke
Keyword(s):  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Terrestrial Laser Scanning ◽  
Urban Trees ◽  
Volume Index ◽  
Convex Hulls ◽  
Tree Crown ◽  
Crown Volume ◽  
Matter Production

Crown volume is a tree attribute relevant in a number of contexts, including photosynthesis and matter production, storm resistance, shadowing of lower layers, habitat for various taxa. While commonly the total crown volume is being determined, for example by wrapping a convex hull around the crown, we present here a methodological approach towards assessing the tree green crown volume (TGCVol), the crown volume with a high density of foliage, which we derive by terrestrial laser scanning in a case study of solitary urban trees. Using the RGB information, we removed the hits on stem and branches within the tree crown and used the remaining leaf hits to determine TGCVol from k-means clustering and convex hulls for the resulting green 3D clusters. We derived a tree green crown volume index (TGCVI) relating the green crown volume to the total crown volume. This TGCVI is a measure of how much a crown is “filled with green” and scale-dependent (a function of specifications of the k-means clustering). Our study is a step towards a standardized assessment of tree green crown volume. We do also address a number of remaining methodological challenges.

scholarly journals Effects of Photographic Distance on Tree Crown Attributes Calculated Using UrbanCrowns Image Analysis Software

2011 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 173-179
Author(s):  
Mason Patterson ◽  
P. Eric Wiseman ◽  
Matthew Winn ◽  
Sang-mook Lee ◽  
Philip Araman
Keyword(s):  
Acer Saccharum ◽  
Urban Forest ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Tree Crown ◽  
Impact Measurement ◽  
Basic Field ◽  
Trunk Diameter ◽  
Crown Volume ◽  
Software Utility

UrbanCrowns is a software program developed by the USDA Forest Service that computes crown attributes using a side-view digital photograph and a few basic field measurements. From an operational standpoint, it is not known how well the software performs under varying photographic conditions for trees of diverse size, which could impact measurement reproducibility and therefore software utility. Researchers evaluated the robustness of crown dimension computations made with UrbanCrowns for open-grown sugar maples (Acer saccharum) across a range of sizes from recently transplanted to full maturity. It was found that computations of both crown volume and density were highly repeatable across varying photographic distances. For the majority of tree size classes, crown volume and density varied less than 5% on average over distances ranging from 1.5× to 3.0× tree height; however, crown volume errors of 5%–10% were common for larger trees (>46 cm trunk diameter). UrbanCrowns calculations of crown volume showed strong agreement with calculations derived from equations for geometric solids, both in terms of precision (R2 = 0.9783) and accuracy (B1 = 1.0033). These findings suggest that UrbanCrowns has potential as an objective, reliable method for measuring tree crown attributes that are commonly assessed during urban forest inventories.

Nondestructive Tree Stem and Crown Volume Allometry in Hybrid Poplar Plantations Derived from Terrestrial Laser Scanning

2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (6) ◽  
pp. 737-746
Author(s):  
Francesco Chianucci ◽  
Nicola Puletti ◽  
Mirko Grotti ◽  
Carlotta Ferrara ◽  
Achille Giorcelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Terrestrial Laser Scanning ◽  
Stem Volume ◽  
Tree Crown ◽  
Crown Volume ◽  
Tree Inventory ◽  
Entry Models ◽  
Poplar Plantations ◽  
Volume Estimates ◽  
Tree Stem

Abstract Accurate and frequently updated tree volume estimates are required for poplar plantations, which are characterized by fast growth rate and short rotation. In this study, we tested the potential of terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) as a reliable method for developing nondestructive tree volume allometries in poplar plantations. The trial was conducted in Italy, where 4- to 10-year-old hybrid plantations were sampled to develop tree crown volume allometry in leaf-on conditions, tree stem volume, and height-diameter allometries in leaf-off conditions. We tested one-entry models based on diameter and two-entry models based on both diameter and height. Model performance was assessed by residual analysis. Results indicate that TLS can provide accurate models of tree stem and crown volume, with percentage of root-mean-square error of about 20 percent and 15 percent, respectively. The inclusion of height does not bring relevant improvement in the models, so that only diameter can be used to predict tree stem and crown volume. The TLS-measured stem volume estimates agreed with an available formula derived from harvesting. We concluded that TLS is a reliable method for developing nondestructive volume allometries in poplar plantations and holds great potential to enhance conventional tree inventory and monitoring. Study Implications: Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) is a technique that allows nondestructive measurement of the three-dimensional structure of a tree with high precision and low cost. The ability of TLS to measure both tree crown volume and tree position can be effective to test optimal spacing requirements and also to test innovative schemes such as mixed or polycyclic poplar plantations. The spatially explicit nature of TLS measurements allows better integration with different remotely sensed sensors, which can be used in combination with TLS, enabling a multiscale assessment of poplar plantation structure with different levels of detail, enhancing conventional tree inventory and supporting effective management strategies.

scholarly journals Laser Scanning and Aerial Photography with UAV in Studying the Structure of Forest-Tundra Stands in the Khibiny Mountains

2021 ◽  
pp. 9-22
Author(s):  
Nail Nisametdinow ◽  
◽  
Pavel Moiseev ◽  
Ivan Vorobiev ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aerial Photography ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Research Area ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Projection Area ◽  
Ground Vegetation ◽  
Average Height ◽  
Forest Tundra ◽  
Manual Correction

Studying the structure of stands is a key point in assessing the role of trees in carbon deposition. Information on the spatial structure of ground vegetation at the upper treeline is still insufficiently presented in modern studies. High resolution remote sensing can provide important data to understand the properties and dynamics of vegetation in these conditions. We test the applicability of ground-based mobile laser scanning of the terrain and aerial photography for the rapid and high-precision assessment of the characteristics of tree stands in the forest-tundra ecotone. We obtained canopy height models (CHMs) of the forest and supplemented them with aerial photographs of the research area on the southeastern slope of the Khibiny Mountains. Using CHMs we have delineated boundaries of tree crowns. The height and projection area were determined for each tree. The first characteristic obtained by laser scanning was compared to the heights of the same trees estimated by field measurements. This was done for the purposes of verification. The comparison revealed that laser scanning data allow to set heights closest to field measurements in case the heights are determined by the maximum values of brightness of pixels of CHMs with manual correction of values when outliers are detected (R2 = 0.84). Since manual correction of outliers is time-consuming, we proposed a way to automate the measurements by determining tree heights using the sum of the average value of pixel brightness and the standard deviation multiplied by 2.5 (R2 = = 0.79). We compared the area characteristics of the stands obtained by laser scanning and the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photography. Thus, we obtained detailed information on the spatial location and size of 4424 trees in an area of about 10 ha and compared the results of measuring tree characteristics obtained by different methods. It was also found that with increasing height from 290 to 425 m above sea level on the studied slope, the average height of stands decreases gradually from 4.5–5.0 to 1.1–1.6 m with small fluctuations (0.2–0.4 m), while the density of stands changes from 4620–5860 to 145 m2/ha in a non-linear way.

Assessment of temporal changes in aboveground forest tree biomass using aerial photographs and allometric equations

2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (10) ◽  
pp. 2585-2594 ◽  
Author(s):  
Avi Bar Massada ◽  
Yohay Carmel ◽  
Gilad Even Tzur ◽  
José M Grünzweig ◽  
Dan Yakir
Keyword(s):  
Pinus Halepensis ◽  
Forest Biomass ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Allometric Equation ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Tree Biomass ◽  
Crown Diameter ◽  
Biomass Dynamics

Studies of forest biomass dynamics typically use long-term forest inventory data, available in only a few places around the world. We present a method that uses photogrammetric measurements from aerial photographs as an alternative to time-series field measurements. We used photogrammetric methods to measure tree height and crown diameter, using four aerial photographs of Yatir Forest, a semi-arid forest in southern Israel, taken between 1978 and 2003. Height and crown-diameter measurements were transformed to biomass using an allometric equation generated from 28 harvested Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis Mill.) trees. Mean tree biomass increased from 6.37 kg in 1978 to 97.01 kg in 2003. Mean plot biomass in 2003 was 2.48 kg/m2 and aboveground primary productivity over the study period ranged between 0.14 and 0.21 kg/m2 per year. There was systematic overestimation of tree height and systematic underestimation of crown diameter, which was corrected for at all time points between 1978 and 2003. The estimated biomass was significantly related to field-measured biomass, with an R2 value of 0.78. This method may serve as an alternative to field sampling for studies of forest biomass dynamics, assuming that there is sufficient spatial and temporal coverage of the investigated area using high-quality aerial photography, and that the tree tops are distinguishable in the photographs.

scholarly journals Regional Modeling of Forest Fuels and Structural Attributes Using Airborne Laser Scanning Data in Oregon

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 261
Author(s):  
Francisco Mauro ◽  
Andrew T. Hudak ◽  
Patrick A. Fekety ◽  
Bryce Frank ◽  
Hailemariam Temesgen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Point Cloud ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Point Clouds ◽  
Semiparametric Models ◽  
Airborne Laser Scanning ◽  
Parametric Models ◽  
Fuel Load ◽  
Forest Fuels ◽  
Airborne Laser

Airborne laser scanning (ALS) acquisitions provide piecemeal coverage across the western US, as collections are organized by local managers of individual project areas. In this study, we analyze different factors that can contribute to developing a regional strategy to use information from completed ALS data acquisitions and develop maps of multiple forest attributes in new ALS project areas in a rapid manner. This study is located in Oregon, USA, and analyzes six forest structural attributes for differences between: (1) synthetic (i.e., not-calibrated), and calibrated predictions, (2) parametric linear and semiparametric models, and (3) models developed with predictors computed for point clouds enclosed in the areas where field measurements were taken, i.e., “point-cloud predictors”, and models developed using predictors extracted from pre-rasterized layers, i.e., “rasterized predictors”. Forest structural attributes under consideration are aboveground biomass, downed woody biomass, canopy bulk density, canopy height, canopy base height, and canopy fuel load. Results from our study indicate that semiparametric models perform better than parametric models if no calibration is performed. However, the effect of the calibration is substantial in reducing the bias of parametric models but minimal for the semiparametric models and, once calibrations are performed, differences between parametric and semiparametric models become negligible for all responses. In addition, minimal differences between models using point-cloud predictors and models using rasterized predictors were found. We conclude that the approach that applies semiparametric models and rasterized predictors, which represents the easiest workflow and leads to the most rapid results, is justified with little loss in accuracy or precision even if no calibration is performed.

scholarly journals Analytical approaches for modeling tree crown volume in black wattle (Acacia mearnsii De Wild.) stands

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (49) ◽  
pp. 4979-4989
Author(s):  
C. Cadori Guilherme ◽  
R. Sanquetta Carlos ◽  
Pellico Netto Sylvio ◽  
Behling Alexandre ◽  
Costa Junior Sergio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tree Crown ◽  
Acacia Mearnsii ◽  
Crown Volume ◽  
Black Wattle ◽  
Analytical Approaches

scholarly journals Accuracy Assessment of Point Clouds from LiDAR and Dense Image Matching Acquired Using the UAV Platform for DTM Creation

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. 342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Salach ◽  
Krzysztof Bakuła ◽  
Magdalena Pilarska ◽  
Wojciech Ostrowski ◽  
Konrad Górski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Point Clouds ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Digital Terrain Models ◽  
Vegetation Height ◽  
Digital Terrain ◽  
Terrain Models ◽  
Airborne Laser ◽  
Vertical Accuracy

In this paper, the results of an experiment about the vertical accuracy of generated digital terrain models were assessed. The created models were based on two techniques: LiDAR and photogrammetry. The data were acquired using an ultralight laser scanner, which was dedicated to Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) platforms that provide very dense point clouds (180 points per square meter), and an RGB digital camera that collects data at very high resolution (a ground sampling distance of 2 cm). The vertical error of the digital terrain models (DTMs) was evaluated based on the surveying data measured in the field and compared to airborne laser scanning collected with a manned plane. The data were acquired in summer during a corridor flight mission over levees and their surroundings, where various types of land cover were observed. The experiment results showed unequivocally, that the terrain models obtained using LiDAR technology were more accurate. An attempt to assess the accuracy and possibilities of penetration of the point cloud from the image-based approach, whilst referring to various types of land cover, was conducted based on Real Time Kinematic Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS-RTK) measurements and was compared to archival airborne laser scanning data. The vertical accuracy of DTM was evaluated for uncovered and vegetation areas separately, providing information about the influence of the vegetation height on the results of the bare ground extraction and DTM generation. In uncovered and low vegetation areas (0–20 cm), the vertical accuracies of digital terrain models generated from different data sources were quite similar: for the UAV Laser Scanning (ULS) data, the RMSE was 0.11 m, and for the image-based data collected using the UAV platform, it was 0.14 m, whereas for medium vegetation (higher than 60 cm), the RMSE from these two data sources were 0.11 m and 0.36 m, respectively. A decrease in the accuracy of 0.10 m, for every 20 cm of vegetation height, was observed for photogrammetric data; and such a dependency was not noticed in the case of models created from the ULS data.

Inoptimality losses in forest management decisions caused by errors in an inventory based on airborne laser scanning and aerial photographs

2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
pp. 2427-2438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Md. Nurul Islam ◽  
Mikko Kurttila ◽  
Lauri Mehtätalo ◽  
Timo Pukkala
Keyword(s):  
Input Data ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Airborne Laser Scanning ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Inventory Data ◽  
Airborne Laser ◽  
Mean Diameter ◽  
The Mean

Errors in inventory data may lead to inoptimal decisions that ultimately result in financial losses for forest owners. We estimated the expected monetary losses resulting from data errors that are similar to errors in laser-based forest inventory. The mean loss was estimated for 67 stands by simulating 100 realizations of inventory data for each stand with errors that mimic those in airborne laser scanning (ALS) based inventory. These realizations were used as input data in stand management optimization, which maximized the present value of all future net incomes (NPV). The inoptimality loss was calculated as the difference between the NPV of the optimal solution and the true NPV of the solution obtained with erroneous input data. The results showed that the mean loss exceeded €300·ha–1 (US$425·ha–1) in 84% of the stands. On average, the losses increased with decreasing stand age and mean diameter. Furthermore, increasing errors in the basal area weighted mean diameter and basal area of spruce were found to significantly increase the loss. It has been discussed that improvements in the accuracy of ALS-based inventory could be financially justified.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document