Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39905535›Full record

ArticlePlant methods2025

Enabling high-throughput quantitative wood anatomy through a dedicated pipeline.

Jan Van den Bulcke, Louis Verschuren, Ruben De Blaere, Simon Vansuyt, Maxime Dekegeleer, Pierre Kibleur, Olivier Pieters, Tom De Mil, Wannes Hubau, Hans Beeckman and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Plant methods, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Jan Van den BulckeUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium. Jan.VandenBulcke@UGent.be.
Louis VerschurenUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Ruben De BlaereUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Simon VansuytUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Maxime DekegeleerUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Pierre KibleurUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Olivier PietersAI and Robotics Lab, IDLab-AIRO, Ghent University - imec, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 126, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Tom De MilForest is Life, TERRA Teaching and Research Centre, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, Passage des déportés 2, 5030, Gembloux, Belgium.
Wannes HubauUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Hans BeeckmanService of Wood Biology, Royal Museum for Central Africa, Leuvensesteenweg 13, 3080, Tervuren, Belgium.
Joris Van AckerUGent-Woodlab, Department of Environment, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Gent, Belgium.
Francis WyffelsAI and Robotics Lab, IDLab-AIRO, Ghent University - imec, Technologiepark-Zwijnaarde 126, 9000, Gent, Belgium.

Funding

Belgian Federal Science Policy Office B2/202/P2/SmartWoodIDBijzonder Onderzoeksfonds UGent BOFSTG2018000701Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek G019521N
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Throughout their lifetime, trees store valuable environmental information within their wood. Unlocking this information requires quantitative analysis, in most cases of the surface of wood. The conventional pathway for high-resolution digitization of wood surfaces and segmentation of wood features requires several manual and time consuming steps. We present a semi-automated high-throughput pipeline for sample preparation, gigapixel imaging, and analysis of the anatomy of the end-grain surfaces of discs and increment cores. The pipeline consists of a collaborative robot (Cobot) with sander for surface preparation, a custom-built open-source robot for gigapixel imaging (Gigapixel Woodbot), and a Python routine for deep-learning analysis of gigapixel images. The robotic sander allows to obtain high-quality surfaces with minimal sanding or polishing artefacts. It is designed for precise and consistent sanding and polishing of wood surfaces, revealing detailed wood anatomical structures by applying consecutively finer grits of sandpaper. Multiple samples can be processed autonomously at once. The custom-built open-source Gigapixel Woodbot is a modular imaging system that enables automated scanning of large wood surfaces. The frame of the robot is a CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machine to position a camera above the objects. Images are taken at different focus points, with a small overlap between consecutive images in the X-Y plane, and merged by mosaic stitching, into a gigapixel image. Multiple scans can be initiated through the graphical application, allowing the system to autonomously image several objects and large surfaces. Finally, a Python routine using a trained YOLOv8 deep learning network allows for fully automated analysis of the gigapixel images, here shown as a proof-of-concept for the quantification of vessels and rays on full disc surfaces and increment cores. We present fully digitized beech discs of 30-35 cm diameter at a resolution of 2.25

Indexed as

Deep learningForest ecologyGigapixel imagingImage stitchingIncrement coresQuantitative wood anatomyRobotic sanderWood discs

Identifiers

PMID39905535
PMCPMC11796111

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.