| Patent holder | Powerchina Kunming Eng Corp Ltd |
| Patent link | View patent |
| Category | Planning & Inventory › Remote sensing & mapping |
Foundation laser point cloud individual tree crown volume extration method based on spherical coordinate integration
Calculating individual tree crown volume from laser point cloud data is an advanced forest measurement technique that leverages airborne, UAV-borne, or terrestrial LiDAR datasets to derive three-dimensional metrics for single trees at stand or landscape scale. A laser point cloud is the raw output of a LiDAR sensor — a dense set of georeferenced x, y, z coordinate points representing surfaces struck by emitted laser pulses — and when collected at sufficient density, it captures the detailed three-dimensional architecture of individual tree crowns. To extract crown volume from this data, algorithms first perform individual tree segmentation, delineating the point returns belonging to each crown from the surrounding canopy using methods such as watershed segmentation, region growing, or deep learning-based detection models. Once a tree's crown point cluster is isolated, its volume can be estimated using convex hull computation, alpha-shape modelling, voxel-based approaches, or parametric fitting of geometric shapes such as ellipsoids or paraboloids. Crown volume is a strong predictor of leaf area index, photosynthetic capacity, and biomass, making it directly valuable for estimating carbon stocks, assessing tree health, and modelling stand productivity. In operational forestry, individual tree crown volumes derived from repeat LiDAR surveys allow managers to track growth increments between measurement epochs, identify suppressed or declining trees for early intervention, and calibrate growth and yield models with far greater sample density than ground-based cruising permits. In the Australian plantation sector, this capability supports more precise harvest scheduling and log quality prediction. Research collaborations between Scion (New Zealand), Interpine, and Australian forestry agencies have demonstrated the operational viability of this approach in both softwood and hardwood plantation contexts, and it is increasingly being embedded in commercial forest management workflows.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Company | Powerchina Kunming Eng Corp Ltd |
| Type | Patent |
| Year | 29/12/22 |
| Status | Pending |
| FWPA RD&E | 7.3 |
| Inventors | Ma Weifeng, Wu Xiaodong, Wang Chong, Wen Ping, Oh Hyun-Joon, Wang Ying, Cao Lei, Luo Junyao, Zhu Qi, Fu Hang |
| Patent No. | CN 115984359 A |