Derivation of Tree Stem Curve and Volume Using Point Clouds

Abstract. Developing a precise tree stem curve and robust estimation of stem volume are crucial for forest inventories with various applications. Laser scanned point clouds have been recognized as the most practical data for tree information modeling. Many methods for stem curve development involve estimating stem diameters at different heights and determining stem volume by utilizing fitted cylinders based on these diameters and the associated heights. The estimation of diameter depends on circle fitting. However, many circle fitting methods are non-robust and inaccurate in the presence of noise, outliers, and significant data gaps, resulting in faulty diameters and imprecise stem volume. Limited scanning, occlusions from the physical complexity, high tree density, and adjacent branches may cause data incompleteness, and generate outliers. To address these challenges, we employ robust statistical approaches to restrain the influence of outliers and data gaps. This paper contributes by (i) exploring the problems of robust diameter estimation for partial data, and in the presence of noise and outliers, (ii) understanding the impacts of using erroneous diameters in cylinder fitting, and later for stem curve and volume estimation, and (iii) developing a robust method that couples robust circle and cylinder fittings to derive precise stem curve and estimation of stem volume in the presence of outliers and partial data. We demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm through terrestrial laser scanning point clouds.