Tree Growth Visualization

Several methods exist in computer graphics to describeand model computer-generated trees. Their commongoal is to generate, from scratch, photorealistic imagesof many trees of a selected species.

In computer graphics, models describing the fractal branching structure of trees typically exploit the modularity of

tree structures. The models are based on local production rules, which are applied iteratively and simultaneously to

create a complex branching system. The objective is to generate three-dimensional scenes of often many realisticlooking

and non-identical trees. Our goal, instead, is to visualize the growth of a prototypical tree of certain

species. It is supposed to look realistic but, more importantly, has to conform with real, measured data. We

construct a tree model being similar to existing ones and extend it by coupling the branching production rules with

dynamic tree-growth rules. The latter are based on equations derived from measured street tree data for London

Plane tree (Platanus acerifolia) such as tree height, diameter-at-breast-height, crown height, crown diameter, and

leaf area. We map the global, measured parameters to the local parameters used in the tree model. The mapping

couples knowledge from plant biology and arboriculture, as we deal with trees that are trained and manipulated to

achieve desired forms and functions within highly urbanized environments.

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