Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 13, 2026

An Objective and Child-friendly Assessment of Arm Function by Using a 3-D Sensor

An Objective and Child-friendly Assessment of Arm Function by Using a 3-D Sensor

Published on: February 12, 2018

Rapid characterization of vegetation structure with a Microsoft Kinect sensor.

George Azzari¹, Michael L Goulden, Radu B Rusu

¹Department of Earth System Science, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA. gazzari@uci.edu

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)

|February 26, 2013

Summary

Researchers used a Microsoft Kinect sensor to rapidly measure vegetation structure in a California grassland. This low-cost tool accurately estimated plant size and biomass, offering a promising alternative to traditional, time-consuming methods.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Forest carbon protocols underestimate climate-driven carbon loss risks.

Nature·2026

Same author

The weak land carbon sink hypothesis.

Science advances·2025

Same author

Towards more effective nature-based climate solutions in global forests.

Nature·2025

Same author

Long-term drought promotes invasive species by reducing wildfire severity.

Ecology·2024

Same author

Tropical forests are approaching critical temperature thresholds.

Nature·2023

Same author

The magnitude and pace of photosynthetic recovery after wildfire in California ecosystems.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2023

Area of Science:

Ecology
Remote Sensing
Plant Science

Background:

Accurate measurement of vegetation structure and biomass is crucial for understanding land-atmosphere interactions.
Traditional methods for assessing canopy structure are often destructive, time-consuming, and labor-intensive.
The Microsoft Kinect, an infrared sensor, offers potential for rapid, non-destructive vegetation characterization.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate the efficacy of the Microsoft Kinect sensor for measuring vegetation structure and plant biomass in a field setting.
To compare Kinect-derived measurements with traditional manual measurements of plant size and structure.
To assess the feasibility of using Kinect technology for ecological field surveys.

Main Methods:

Depth images were acquired using a Microsoft Kinect sensor for two plant species in a California grassland.

More Related Videos

Computer Vision-Based Biomass Estimation for Invasive Plants

Computer Vision-Based Biomass Estimation for Invasive Plants

Published on: February 9, 2024

Collecting and Processing Drone-based Remotely Sensed Data for Use in Forest Recovery Monitoring

Collecting and Processing Drone-based Remotely Sensed Data for Use in Forest Recovery Monitoring

Published on: October 24, 2025

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 13, 2026

An Objective and Child-friendly Assessment of Arm Function by Using a 3-D Sensor

An Objective and Child-friendly Assessment of Arm Function by Using a 3-D Sensor

Published on: February 12, 2018

Computer Vision-Based Biomass Estimation for Invasive Plants

Computer Vision-Based Biomass Estimation for Invasive Plants

Published on: February 9, 2024

Collecting and Processing Drone-based Remotely Sensed Data for Use in Forest Recovery Monitoring

Collecting and Processing Drone-based Remotely Sensed Data for Use in Forest Recovery Monitoring

Published on: October 24, 2025

Kinect-obtained data on plant structure were compared with manual measurements of plant size (horizontal and vertical dimensions).

Plant volumes were calculated using a 3D convex hulls approach and related to plant biomass.

Main Results:

Kinect depth images showed strong agreement with manual measurements of plant horizontal and vertical size.
Calculated plant volumes using the convex hulls method were well correlated with plant biomass.
The Kinect sensor demonstrated limitations including a short measurement range and susceptibility to daytime light interference.

Conclusions:

The Microsoft Kinect is a viable and promising tool for rapid, non-destructive field surveys of vegetation canopy structure.
Its lightweight design, fast data acquisition, low power needs, and cost-effectiveness make it suitable for ecological research, particularly for small-statured vegetation.
Further development could address limitations for broader ecological applications.