Comparison of Coniferous Plantation Heights Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Laser Scanning and Stereo Photogrammetry

Accuracy Verification of Surface Models of Architectural Objects from the iPad LiDAR in the Context of Photogrammetry Methods

The creation of accurate three-dimensional models has been radically simplified in recent years by developing photogrammetric methods. However, the photogrammetric procedure requires complex data processing and does not provide an immediate 3D model, so its use during field (in situ) surveys is infeasible. This paper presents the mapping of fragments of built structures at different scales (finest detail, garden sculpture, architectural interior, building facade) by using a LiDAR sensor from the Apple iPad Pro mobile device. The resulting iPad LiDAR and photogrammetric models were compared with reference models derived from laser scanning and point measurements. For small objects with complex geometries acquired by iPad LiDAR, up to 50% of points were unaligned with the reference models, which is much more than for photogrammetric models. This was primarily due to much less frequent sampling and, consequently, a sparser grid. This simplification of object surfaces is highly beneficial in the case of walls and building facades as it smooths out their surfaces. The application potential of the IPad LiDAR Pro is severely constrained by its range cap being 5 m, which greatly limits the size of objects that can be recorded, and excludes most buildings.

Measuring Vegetation Heights and Their Seasonal Changes in the Western Namibian Savanna Using Spaceborne Lidars

The Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) with its land and vegetation height data product (ATL08), and Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) with its terrain elevation and height metrics data product (GEDI Level 2A) missions have great potential to globally map ground and canopy heights. Canopy height is a key factor in estimating above-ground biomass and its seasonal changes; these satellite missions can also improve estimated above-ground carbon stocks. This study presents a novel Sparse Vegetation Detection Algorithm (SVDA) which uses ICESat-2 (ATL03, geolocated photons) data to map tree and vegetation heights in a sparsely vegetated savanna ecosystem. The SVDA consists of three main steps: First, noise photons are filtered using the signal confidence flag from ATL03 data and local point statistics. Second, we classify ground photons based on photon height percentiles. Third, tree and grass photons are classified based on the number of neighbors. We validated tree heights with field measurements (n = 55), finding a root-mean-square error (RMSE) of 1.82 m using SVDA, GEDI Level 2A (Geolocated Elevation and Height Metrics product): 1.33 m, and ATL08: 5.59 m. Our results indicate that the SVDA is effective in identifying canopy photons in savanna ecosystems, where ATL08 performs poorly. We further identify seasonal vegetation height changes with an emphasis on vegetation below 3 m; widespread height changes in this class from two wet-dry cycles show maximum seasonal changes of 1 m, possibly related to seasonal grass-height differences. Our study shows the difficulties of vegetation measurements in savanna ecosystems but provides the first estimates of seasonal biomass changes.

Study on the Estimation of Forest Volume Based on Multi-Source Data

We performed a comparative analysis of the prediction accuracy of machine learning methods and ordinary Kriging (OK) hybrid methods for forest volume models based on multi-source remote sensing data combined with ground survey data. Taking Larix olgensis, Pinus koraiensis, and Pinus sylvestris plantations in Mengjiagang forest farms as the research object, based on the Chinese Academy of Forestry LiDAR, charge-coupled device, and hyperspectral (CAF-LiTCHy) integrated system, we extracted the visible vegetation index, texture features, terrain factors, and point cloud feature variables, respectively. Random forest (RF), support vector regression (SVR), and an artificial neural network (ANN) were used to estimate forest volume. In the small-scale space, the estimation of sample plot volume is influenced by the surrounding environment as well as the neighboring observed data. Based on the residuals of these three machine learning models, OK interpolation was applied to construct new hybrid forest volume estimation models called random forest Kriging (RFK), support vector machines for regression Kriging (SVRK), and artificial neural network Kriging (ANNK). The six estimation models of forest volume were tested using the leave-one-out (Loo) cross-validation method. The prediction accuracies of these six models are better, with RLoo2 values above 0.6, and the prediction accuracy values of the hybrid models are all improved to different extents. Among the six models, the RFK hybrid model had the best prediction effect, with an RLoo2 reaching 0.915. Therefore, the machine learning method based on multi-source remote sensing factors is useful for forest volume estimation; in particular, the hybrid model constructed by combining machine learning and the OK method greatly improved the accuracy of forest volume estimation, which, thus, provides a fast and effective method for the remote sensing inversion estimation of forest volume and facilitates the management of forest resources.