Harvester Measuring System for Trunk Volume Determination: Comparison with the Real Trunk Volume and Applicability in the Forest Industry

Abstract

In Germany, the determination of log volumes for commercial transactions is performed in accordance with established German legal requirements by the manual measurement method (calipers) and by the use of optoelectronic systems. In the timber industry, log volumes determined by the harvester measuring system are not considered to be reliable. In this investigation, the manual measuring method and the harvester measuring system were compared with the real (reference) trunk volume determined using the water immersion technique based on the well-known Archimedes principle (water displacement method). Results show that the volume determined using the harvester measuring system was on average -0.45% compared to the water immersion technique. Interestingly, the difference between the recommended rules of the raw timber trade framework agreement (RVR) using Huber’s formula and the water immersion technique was -7.53%.