Comparison of forest canopy height profiles in a mountainous region of Taiwan derived from airborne lidar and unmanned aerial vehicle imagery

2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (8) ◽  
pp. 1289-1304 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chih-Hsin Chung ◽  
Chao-Huan Wang ◽  
Han-Ching Hsieh ◽  
Cho-Ying Huang
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Airborne Lidar ◽  
Canopy Height ◽  
Mountainous Region ◽  
Aerial Vehicle

Spatial Dynamic Analysis of a Mangeove Patch Based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle: A Case Study in Pear Bay in Guangxi, China

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Lin ◽  
Chungan Li ◽  
Mei Zhou ◽  
Wenhai Liang ◽  
Biao Li
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Spatial Dynamics ◽  
Absolute Error ◽  
Maximum Error ◽  
Canopy Height ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Maximum Absolute Error ◽  
Patch Area ◽  
Maximum Increase ◽  
Aerial Vehicle

Abstract This study investigated the short-term spatial variability of an mangrove patch, located in the Pearl Bay in Guangxi, China. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery covering the period from March 2015 to October 2017 were used and the following models were developed: two annual ultra-high resolution spatial resolution digital orthophoto maps (DOMs), two digital elevation models (DEMs), two digital surface models (DSMs), two canopy height models (CHMs), and a canopy height difference model (d-CHM). Using these models, the spatial dynamics of the extent and canopy height of the patch were analyzed. The resolution of the DOMs was 0.1 m, with an average geometrical error of 0.17 m and a maximum error of 0.44 m. The resolutions of DEMs, DSMs, CHMs, d-CHM were all 1 m. The average elevation errors of CHM in 2015 and 2017 were 0.002 m and -0.001 m, respectively, with maximum absolute errors of 0.034 m and 0.030 m, respectively. The average elevation error of d-CHM was -0.003 m and the maximum absolute error was 0.036 m, and the data quality were rated as good. From 2015 to 2017, the area of the mangrove patch increased from 8.16 ha to 8.79 ha, with an average annual increase of 3.7%. Specifically, the areas of expansion, shrinkage, and maximum seaward expansion were 6356 m2, 19 m2, and 24 m, respectively. The driving factor for the variability was natural processes. Stand canopy height exhibited a particular trend of decrease from northwest to southeast (horizontal; parallel to the seawall) and from the land to the sea (vertically; perpendicular to the seawall). From 2015 to 2017, 88.2% of the patch area showed increased canopy height, with an average increase of 0.78 m and a maximum increase of 3.2 m. In contrast, 11.8% of the patch area showed decreased canopy height with a maximum decrease of 3.1 m. The main reason for the decrease in canopy height was the death of trees caused by serious insect plagues. On the other hand, the reason for the increase in height could be attributed to the natural growth of mangrove trees, but further studies are required to verify the cause. UAV remote sensing has an incomparable advantage over traditional methods in that it provides extremely detailed and highly accurate information for in-depth study of the spatial evolution of mangrove patches, which would significantly contribute towards the protection and management of mangroves.

scholarly journals TRACKING FOREST AND OPEN AREA EFFECTS ON SNOW ACCUMULATION BY UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE PHOTOGRAMMETRY

2016 ◽  
Vol XLI-B1 ◽  
pp. 917-923
Author(s):  
T. Lendzioch ◽  
J. Langhammer ◽  
M. Jenicek
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Snow Depth ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Forest Succession ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Digital Photogrammetry ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
The Impact

Airborne digital photogrammetry is undergoing a renaissance. The availability of low-cost Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) platforms well adopted for digital photography and progress in software development now gives rise to apply this technique to different areas of research. Especially in determining snow depth spatial distributions, where repetitive mapping of cryosphere dynamics is crucial. Here, we introduce UAV-based digital photogrammetry as a rapid and robust approach for evaluating snow accumulation over small local areas (e.g., dead forest, open areas) and to reveal impacts related to changes in forest and snowpack. Due to the advancement of the technique, snow depth of selected study areas such as of healthy forest, disturbed forest, succession, dead forest, and of open areas can be estimated at a 1 cm spatial resolution. The approach is performed in two steps: 1) developing a high resolution Digital Elevation Model during snow-free and 2) during snow-covered conditions. By substracting these two models the snow depth can be accurately retrieved and volumetric changes of snow depth distribution can be achieved. This is a first proof-of-concept study combining snow depth determination and Leaf Area Index (LAI) retrieval to monitor the impact of forest canopy metrics on snow accumulation in coniferous forest within the Šumava National Park, Czech Republic. Both, downward-looking UAV images and upward-looking LAI-2200 canopy analyser measurements were applied to reveal the LAI, controlling interception and transmitting radiation. For the performance of downward-looking images the snow background instead of the sky fraction was used. In contrast to the classical determination of LAI by hemispherical photography or by LAI plant canopy analyser, our approach will also test the accuracy of LAI measurements by UAV that are taken simultaneously during the snow cover mapping campaigns. Since the LAI parameter is important for snowpack modelling, this method presents the potential of simplifying LAI retrieval and mapping of snow dynamics while reducing running costs and time.

scholarly journals Crop Monitoring Using Satellite/UAV Data Fusion and Machine Learning

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maitiniyazi Maimaitijiang ◽  
Vasit Sagan ◽  
Paheding Sidike ◽  
Ahmad M. Daloye ◽  
Hasanjan Erkbol ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
Data Fusion ◽  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Canopy Structure ◽  
Canopy Height ◽  
Spectral Information ◽  
Structure Information ◽  
Crop Monitoring ◽  
Aerial Vehicle

Non-destructive crop monitoring over large areas with high efficiency is of great significance in precision agriculture and plant phenotyping, as well as decision making with regards to grain policy and food security. The goal of this research was to assess the potential of combining canopy spectral information with canopy structure features for crop monitoring using satellite/unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) data fusion and machine learning. Worldview-2/3 satellite data were tasked synchronized with high-resolution RGB image collection using an inexpensive unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at a heterogeneous soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) field. Canopy spectral information (i.e., vegetation indices) was extracted from Worldview-2/3 data, and canopy structure information (i.e., canopy height and canopy cover) was derived from UAV RGB imagery. Canopy spectral and structure information and their combination were used to predict soybean leaf area index (LAI), aboveground biomass (AGB), and leaf nitrogen concentration (N) using partial least squares regression (PLSR), random forest regression (RFR), support vector regression (SVR), and extreme learning regression (ELR) with a newly proposed activation function. The results revealed that: (1) UAV imagery-derived high-resolution and detailed canopy structure features, canopy height, and canopy coverage were significant indicators for crop growth monitoring, (2) integration of satellite imagery-based rich canopy spectral information with UAV-derived canopy structural features using machine learning improved soybean AGB, LAI, and leaf N estimation on using satellite or UAV data alone, (3) adding canopy structure information to spectral features reduced background soil effect and asymptotic saturation issue to some extent and led to better model performance, (4) the ELR model with the newly proposed activated function slightly outperformed PLSR, RFR, and SVR in the prediction of AGB and LAI, while RFR provided the best result for N estimation. This study introduced opportunities and limitations of satellite/UAV data fusion using machine learning in the context of crop monitoring.

Mapping forest canopy height using TanDEM-X DSM and airborne LiDAR DTM

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaser Sadeghi ◽  
Benoit St-Onge ◽  
Brigitte Leblon ◽  
Marc Simard ◽  
Kostas Papathanassiou
Keyword(s):  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Airborne Lidar ◽  
Canopy Height

scholarly journals Remote estimation of leaf area index (LAI) with unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imaging for different rice cultivars throughout the entire growing season

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Gong ◽  
Kali Yang ◽  
Zhiheng Lin ◽  
Shenghui Fang ◽  
Xianting Wu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Canopy Height ◽  
Dynamic Monitoring ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Rice Cultivars ◽  
Simple Method ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Aerial Vehicle

Abstract Background: Rice is one of the most important grain crops worldwide. The accurate and dynamic monitoring of leaf are index (LAI) provides important information to evaluate rice growth and production. Methods: This study explores a simple method to remotely estimate LAI with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) imaging for a variety of rice cultivars throughout the entire growing season. 48 different rice cultivars were planted in the study site and field campaigns were conducted once a week. For each campaign, several widely used vegetation indices (VI) were calculated from canopy reflectance obtained by 12-band UAV images, canopy height was derived from UAV RGB images and LAI was destructively measured by plant sampling. Results: The results showed the correlation of VI and LAI in rice throughout the entire growing season was weak, and for all tested indices there existed significant hysteresis of VI vs. LAI relationship between rice pre-heading and post-heading stages. The model based on the product of VI and canopy height could reduce such hysteresis and estimate rice LAI of the whole season with estimation errors under 24%, not requiring algorithm re-parameterization for different phenology stages. Conclusions: The progressing phenology can affect VI vs. LAI relationship in crops, especially for rice having quite different canopy spectra and structure after its panicle exsertion. Thus the models solely using VI to estimate rice LAI are phenology-specific and have high uncertainties for post-heading stages. The model developed in this study combines both remotely sensed canopy height and VI information, considerably improving rice LAI estimation accuracy at both pre- and post-heading stages. This method can be easily and efficiently implemented in UAV platforms for various rice cultivars during the entire growing season with no rice phenology and cultivar pre-knowledge, which has great potential for assisting rice breeding and field management studies at a large scale.

scholarly journals TRACKING FOREST AND OPEN AREA EFFECTS ON SNOW ACCUMULATION BY UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE PHOTOGRAMMETRY

2016 ◽  
Vol XLI-B1 ◽  
pp. 917-923 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Lendzioch ◽  
J. Langhammer ◽  
M. Jenicek
Keyword(s):  
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Snow Depth ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Forest Succession ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Digital Photogrammetry ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
The Impact

Airborne digital photogrammetry is undergoing a renaissance. The availability of low-cost Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) platforms well adopted for digital photography and progress in software development now gives rise to apply this technique to different areas of research. Especially in determining snow depth spatial distributions, where repetitive mapping of cryosphere dynamics is crucial. Here, we introduce UAV-based digital photogrammetry as a rapid and robust approach for evaluating snow accumulation over small local areas (e.g., dead forest, open areas) and to reveal impacts related to changes in forest and snowpack. Due to the advancement of the technique, snow depth of selected study areas such as of healthy forest, disturbed forest, succession, dead forest, and of open areas can be estimated at a 1 cm spatial resolution. The approach is performed in two steps: 1) developing a high resolution Digital Elevation Model during snow-free and 2) during snow-covered conditions. By substracting these two models the snow depth can be accurately retrieved and volumetric changes of snow depth distribution can be achieved. This is a first proof-of-concept study combining snow depth determination and Leaf Area Index (LAI) retrieval to monitor the impact of forest canopy metrics on snow accumulation in coniferous forest within the Šumava National Park, Czech Republic. Both, downward-looking UAV images and upward-looking LAI-2200 canopy analyser measurements were applied to reveal the LAI, controlling interception and transmitting radiation. For the performance of downward-looking images the snow background instead of the sky fraction was used. In contrast to the classical determination of LAI by hemispherical photography or by LAI plant canopy analyser, our approach will also test the accuracy of LAI measurements by UAV that are taken simultaneously during the snow cover mapping campaigns. Since the LAI parameter is important for snowpack modelling, this method presents the potential of simplifying LAI retrieval and mapping of snow dynamics while reducing running costs and time.

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