Tree survey software and technology

[ADB328]

Arbortrack on tablet.

 

Great program but lacking some basic features (GPS) . the new live version will appararently address these issues, one of the new features is that you can make a works order and include maps and email it to contractor while still staring at the tree.

 

which is a nice feature and will save me loads of admin time.

[markiesla]

Arbortrack on tablet.

 

Great program but lacking some basic features (GPS) . the new live version will appararently address these issues, one of the new features is that you can make a works order and include maps and email it to contractor while still staring at the tree.

 

which is a nice feature and will save me loads of admin time.

 

Phone data signal permitting of course - but that is the bane of all our lives when it comes to "live data"

[Rob Murison]

I've heard good things about arbortrack however (i may be completely wrong) i was under the impression that it is more designed for land owners / managers such as estates and councils who manage a stock of trees. Our business is mainly BS 5837 surveys and risk assessment surveys on sites across the UK. Again, i may be wrong, but i'm pretty sure arbortrack is designed for this kind of work.. Any thoughts?

 

Anyone had any good experiences with epicollect or OTISS?

 

Cheers,

Rob

[Paul Barton]

How about using a bespoke Excel spreadsheet with drop down lists in the columns, coupled with a free AutoCAD viewer/editor such as AutoCAD WS?

 

You could load both on to a tablet (ipad/android) and then label the trees on the topo as you go along on the survey and complete the spreadsheet schedule. Simple and cheap! It won't draw a fancy tree survey plan for you though - you'd still need some drawing software for that, but I don't think any of the 'tree software' available draws good plans, with the exception of PT Mapper Pro.

[Arborowen]

Whats important to remember about all software and hardware is that they all are designed for a specific task/contractor/client/landowner. I've heard bad things about loads of software thats trying to be used for something is not quite designed for.

 

Choosing software is like anything. Proper consultation etc

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[Rob Murison]

How about using a bespoke Excel spreadsheet with drop down lists in the columns, coupled with a free AutoCAD viewer/editor such as AutoCAD WS?

 

I fell this is probably the way to go.. I sat down and made a spread sheet with loads of dropdowns and pretty much coppied out all tree species found in the collins guide (That takes ages) so i know that will work and the autocad software is great, especially as we already use the desktop version. The last hurdle to jump over in this instance is finding an efficient way of using an aerial photograph to locate trees and input tree numbers onto, this would be for standard hazard assessment surveys where topo surveys are not available..

 

It seems like there isn't THE perfect solution just yet, if i was more technically minded i'd defiantly have a go at writing my own software to satisfy our bespoke needs!

 

Thanks again for all your inputs,

 

Rob

[rck]

AutoCAD can be very useful. Attached is the sort of look you can easily get. The trees on this plan were generated automatically by AutoCAD from data in a spreadsheet, and even inserted by AutoCAD. No third party software involved. We used this method to produce drawings of a 4000 tree site. Trees generated and inserted at the rate of 10 per second. Even shows shadow casts if required.

 

Rob.

TCP A2 PDF LAND EXP.pdf

[browncow]

Hi Guys,

 

The company I work for is currently going through the process of getting in to tree mapping. We have carried out one large survey (1000 odd trees) using a survey map provided by a land surveyor which showed tree locations and buildings etc.

 

Now we are looking to buy software and handheld devices to gps the trees ourselves and collect the data. I have had email correspondence with a couple of software retailers but have to say I am no clearer on what to buy or how to use it.

 

Can someone point me in the right direction as to what software might be best for someone like me who has little tech experience. Ideally I would like to find someone to help set-up the templates for the fields we want to capture and explain the process of overlaying the data points onto aerial photos or maps.

 

Hope this makes sense?

[Paul Barton]

If you're looking for advice and help setting up a system then I can't recommend the services of James England highly enough.

 

James is an independent GIS expert who has a background in arboriculture and forestry. He has used pretty much every GPS data capture system on the market and has a very good idea of the pros and cons of each. He is also a re-seller for a few of the systems so can supply handhelds and software.

 

I have used his services many times over the last few years and am always very happy with what he can do. His email is [email protected] if you want to get in touch.

 

Apart from that, I have used Digiterra, ArcPad and PocketGIS to do what you are asking - they are all pretty good but excel at different things. The software ranges from £500 to £750 plus the cost of the handheld devices.

[sloth]

+1 for James England, although I've not decided to buy from him he was very helpful and humoured my complete newbie questions! He certainly knows his stuff. Could also try Pear Technology, very helpful if a bit expensive. ..