Terrestrial Laser Scans of Individual Trees for Volume Estimation

Winter 2020/2021 TLS data from two managed mixed temperate forest sites in Switzerland. The dataset contains semi-automatically segmented individual tree point clouds, created by ENVIDAT for validating volume estimation methods against destructive reference data from 60 trees.

Use Cases

• Validate quantitative structure models (QSM) for total tree volume against destructive reference data.
• Compare TLS-derived geometric parameters for stem and coarse wood volume estimation.
• Benchmark operational allometric scaling models (ASM) against 3D reconstruction from point clouds.

Strengths

• Contains destructive reference volume data for 60 individual trees for validation.
• Point clouds acquired in leaf-off conditions, reducing occlusion for structure modeling.
• Data from two distinct geographic sites (47.42°N 8.49°E and 47.504°N, 7.78°E).

Limitations

• Limited to 60 reference trees, which is a small sample size for robust model training.
• Geographic scope is restricted to two temperate forest sites in Switzerland.
• Data is from a single winter season, lacking temporal variation.

Provenance

Source

ENVIDAT

Collection Method

Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) with a Leica BLK 360 instrument using a tree-centric scanning pattern, followed by semi-automatic segmentation.

Time Range

Winter 2020/2021

Freshness

Last updated in January 2023.

Geography

Two sites in Switzerland: 47.42°N 8.49°E and 47.504°N, 7.78°E.