Introducing SlashScan: An iOS app to measure forest slash piles in real time

Photo Credit

Courtesy photo by Heechan Jeong

A slash pile on the research site in Starker Forest, Oregon.

An efficient, mobile, and low-cost method for slash pile inventory

Researchers at the Rocky Mountain Research Station and the University of Oregon published a research article that describes the development of SlashScan, a new mobile application for iPhone and iPad that field-going foresters, fuels managers, and contractors can use to simultaneously estimate slash pile volume and generate location data in real time without additional equipment. The app integrates LiDAR scanning, three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction, volumetric analysis, and geospatial mapping within a single platform and operates entirely on the device, providing a practical, relatively low-cost way to inventory slash piles in the field where rapid volume estimation, accurate location, and immediate results are important. It only takes about 30 seconds to estimate the volume of a pile, and it does not require internet connection to use. 

Use of the app could improve efficiency in forest operations and management, particularly biomass removal and use in fire-prone landscapes. Its main strengths are mobility, speed, and integration of data collection and analysis within a single device. In terms of limitations, users may encounter difficulty capturing upper surfaces of tall piles without height assistance, such as using a “selfie stick.” Similarly, during testing of the app, researchers found a reconstruction bias in concave or poorly observed areas and some challenges with pile boundary delineation due to user error or foreign objects like large rocks, but this can be corrected manually on screen. 

SlashScan can also save money. The Forest Service typically estimates pile volume using manual geometric methods, which are relatively simple but labor intensive. Drone-based (UAV) lidar methods are very accurate and efficient in the field over large areas but require relatively costly equipment and intensive data processing that is not generally done on site. SlashScan is both more accurate and less costly than manual geometric methods and has comparable accuracy to drone-based lidar, generating almost instantaneous volume estimates on the fly at lower cost, while simultaneously mapping piles.

The SlashScan app is available for download from the Apple App Store.

Photo Credit

Figure by Heechan Jeong

Using an iPad 13-inch Pro, the SlashScan app does 360-degree scanning of a slash pile.