Seminar: Pruning of Tree Crops through 3D Reconstruction and Light Simulation using Mobile LiDAR, 19th August, 1p

When: Thursday 19th of August, 1pm AEST

Where: This seminar will be presented online via Zoom, RSVP here.

Speaker: Fred Westling

Title: Pruning of Tree Crops through 3D Reconstruction and Light Simulation using Mobile LiDAR

Abstract:
Fruit trees require significant pruning to ensure they receive sufficient light to grow viable fruit, but doing this with a data-driven approach is problematic due to the difficulties of physical experimentation, so traditional methods are based on rules of thumb or expert intuition. The work presented in this talk develops a method for producing pruning recommendations tailored to specific trees. Tree geometry is captured using handheld LiDAR, weather conditions are simulated to estimate light availability, and then recommendations are provided to balance improved access to light with tree volume. This seminar will be presented again as a thesis defence at the end of August.

Bio:
Fred Westling has been at the ACFR since early 2017, supervised by James Underwood and Mitch Bryson, and submitted the work presented in this talk as his PhD thesis earlier this year. He currently works at the Technology and Innovation group at Laing O’Rourke, developing innovative ways to improve construction processes using LiDAR, AI and 360 cameras.