Impact of Beam Diameter and Scanning Approach on Point Cloud Quality of Terrestrial Laser Scanning in Forests

In recent years, portable laser scanning devices and their applications in the context of forest mensuration have undergone rapid methodological and technological developments. Devices have become smaller, lighter, and more affordable, whereas new data-driven methods and software packages have facilitated the derivation of information from point clouds. Thus, terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) is now well established, and laser–object interactions have been studied using theoretical, modeling, and experimental approaches. The representation of scanned objects in terms of accuracy and completeness is a key factor for successful feature extraction. Still, little is known about the influence of TLS and survey properties on point clouds in complex scattering environments, such as forests. In this study, we investigate the influence of laser beam diameter and signal triggering on the quality of point clouds in forested environments. Based on the Swiss National Forest Inventory data, we simulate the TLS measurements in 684 virtual forest stands using a 3-D content creation suite. We show that small objects lack sufficient representation in the point cloud and they are further negatively influenced by large laser beam diameters, dense stands, and large distances from the scanning device. We provide simulations that make it possible to derive a rationale for decisions regarding the appropriate choice of TLS device and survey configuration for forest inventories.