Examining Changes in Stem Taper and Volume Growth with Two-Date 3D Point Clouds

Luoma, Ville; Saarinen, Ninni; Kankare, Ville; Tanhuanpää, Topi; Kaartinen, Harri; Kukko, Antero; Holopainen, Markus; Hyyppä, Juha; Vastaranta, Mikko

doi:10.3390/f10050382

Cited by 33 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Furthermore, data acquisition from conservation areas, for example, is only possible when destructive measurements are not required. Finally, multi-temporal TLS measurements enable monitoring of stem taper over time [56].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Effects of Sample Size on Parametrizing a Taper Curve Equation and the Resultant Stem-Volume Estimates

Saarinen

Kankare

Pyörälä

et al. 2019

Forests

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Large and comprehensive datasets, traditionally based on destructive stem analysis or other labor-intensive approaches, are commonly considered as a necessity in developing stem-volume equations. The aim here was to investigate how a decreasing number of sample trees affects parametrizing an existing taper curve equation and resultant stem-volume estimates. Furthermore, the potential of terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) in producing taper curves was examined. A TLS-based taper curve was derived for 246 Scots pines (Pinus sylvestris L.) from southern Finland to parametrize an existing taper curve equation. To assess sensitivity of the parametrization regarding sample size, the number of Scots pines included in the parametrization varied between full census and 1 Scots pine at a time. Root mean square error of stem-volume estimates remained ≤20.9% and the mean absolute difference was relatively constant (≤9.0%) between stem-volume estimates when the sample size included ≥46 Scots pines. Thus, it can be concluded that, with a rather small sample size, a taper curve equation can be re-parametrized for local conditions using point clouds from TLS to produce consistent stem-volume estimates.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Effects of Sample Size on Parametrizing a Taper Curve Equation and the Resultant Stem-Volume Estimates

Saarinen

Kankare

Pyörälä

et al. 2019

Forests

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“…Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) has proven to non-destructively provide three-dimensional (3D) information on tree stems (Liang et al 2014, Kankare et al 2013, Raumonen et al 2013, Saarinen et al 2017) that has been impractical to produce with traditional means such as calipers or measurement tape. In applications related to boreal forests, TLS has been utilized in quantifying stem growth and changes in stem taper (Luoma et al 2019), reparametrizing an existing taper curve model , and assessing timber quality ).…”

Section: Background and Summarymentioning

confidence: 99%

Detailed point cloud data on stem size and shape of Scots pine trees

Saarinen

Kankare

Yrttimaa

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Quantitative assessment of the effects of forest management on tree size and shape has been challenging as there has been a lack of methodologies for characterizing differences and possible changes comprehensively in space and time. Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and photogrammetric point clouds provide three-dimensional (3D) information on tree stem reconstructions required for characterizing differences between stem shapes and growth allocation. This data set includes 3D reconstructions of stems of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees from sample plots with different thinning treatments. The thinning treatments include two intensities of thinning, three thinning types as well as control (i.e. no thinning treatment since the establishment). The data set can be used in developing point clouds processing algorithms for single tree stem reconstruction and for investigating variation in stem size and shape of Scots pine trees. Additionally, it offers possibilities in characterizing the effects of various thinning treatments on stem size and shape of Scots pine trees from boreal forests. Data set: Zenodo https://zenodo.org/record/3701271 Data set license: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

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“…Although it has been demonstrated that TLS technology can be used for detecting structural changes in single trees as well as changes in the canopy structure [30][31][32][33][34][35], there is still a limited understanding on how different kinds of forest structural changes can be quantified using TLS in boreal forest conditions. Srinivasan et al [30] used TLS data from two time points (2009 and 2012) for modeling tree biomass changes in East Texas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structural Changes in Boreal Forests Can Be Quantified Using Terrestrial Laser Scanning

et al. 2020

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Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) has been adopted as a feasible technique to digitize trees and forest stands, providing accurate information on tree and forest structural attributes. However, there is limited understanding on how a variety of forest structural changes can be quantified using TLS in boreal forest conditions. In this study, we assessed the accuracy and feasibility of TLS in quantifying changes in the structure of boreal forests. We collected TLS data and field reference from 37 sample plots in 2014 (T1) and 2019 (T2). Tree stems typically have planar, vertical, and cylindrical characteristics in a point cloud, and thus we applied surface normal filtering, point cloud clustering, and RANSAC-cylinder filtering to identify these geometries and to characterize trees and forest stands at both time points. The results strengthened the existing knowledge that TLS has the capacity to characterize trees and forest stands in space and showed that TLS could characterize structural changes in time in boreal forest conditions. Root-mean-square-errors (RMSEs) in the estimates for changes in the tree attributes were 0.99–1.22 cm for diameter at breast height (Δdbh), 44.14–55.49 cm2 for basal area (Δg), and 1.91–4.85 m for tree height (Δh). In general, tree attributes were estimated more accurately for Scots pine trees, followed by Norway spruce and broadleaved trees. At the forest stand level, an RMSE of 0.60–1.13 cm was recorded for changes in basal area-weighted mean diameter (ΔDg), 0.81–2.26 m for changes in basal area-weighted mean height (ΔHg), 1.40–2.34 m2/ha for changes in mean basal area (ΔG), and 74–193 n/ha for changes in the number of trees per hectare (ΔTPH). The plot-level accuracy was higher in Scots pine-dominated sample plots than in Norway spruce-dominated and mixed-species sample plots. TLS-derived tree and forest structural attributes at time points T1 and T2 differed significantly from each other (p < 0.05). If there was an increase or decrease in dbh, g, h, height of the crown base, crown ratio, Dg, Hg, or G recorded in the field, a similar outcome was achieved by using TLS. Our results provided new information on the feasibility of TLS for the purposes of forest ecosystem growth monitoring.

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Examining Changes in Stem Taper and Volume Growth with Two-Date 3D Point Clouds

Cited by 33 publications

References 52 publications

Assessing the Effects of Sample Size on Parametrizing a Taper Curve Equation and the Resultant Stem-Volume Estimates

Assessing the Effects of Sample Size on Parametrizing a Taper Curve Equation and the Resultant Stem-Volume Estimates

Detailed point cloud data on stem size and shape of Scots pine trees

Structural Changes in Boreal Forests Can Be Quantified Using Terrestrial Laser Scanning

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