Competitiveness

1
Competitiveness .Advanced and Future
Processing You Need to Be Aware Of Plus a few
other things

• Phil Araman
• USDA Forest Service
• Brooks Forest Products Center / VT
• Blacksburg, VA

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Advanced and Future Processing you need to be
thinking about .

• In the woods
• In sawmills
• In pallet plants
• In rough mills

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Why ??

• for processing improvements, yield improvements,
  reduced costs, and improved hardwood products for
  customers.

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Technologies include

• Hardwood tree-length log bucking scanning systems
  to improve log values and yields
• Internal log scanning and sawing
• Sawmill edging and trimming optimization systems
• Grading and evaluating hardwood lumber
• Curve sawing non-straight hardwood logs
• Evaluating low-grade pallet cants for marketing
  and processing systems
• Scanning systems for pallet part grading to
  increase quality and revenues
• Automated lumber to parts processing

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Lets start with

• A potential hardwood tree-length log bucking
  scanning system to improve log values and yields

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Current Roundwood (log) Production Operations

• Bucking in the woods or at landings
• Optimization is not a major concern
• Veneer logs are lost
• Losses in log length
• Sawlogs sometimes maximize sweep
• Multiple product production is mostly lacking
• The job is difficult

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Please Excuse Some East / West Stuff

• Much of your Alder processing is different than
  eastern hardwood processing
• Many of your mills are different
• Bucking at mill sights
• Small log chip and saws
• Regular processing for other logs
• Produce pallet parts not cants

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In the Woods or at the bucking landingStudies
have shown that many dollars are lost in tree to
log processing

• Pickens in 1992 found value losses between 39
  and 55 percent in the UP of Michigan
• Haynes and Visser found average value losses of
  20.7 percent in the Southern Appalachian area in
  2002

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Whats needed ..

• Accurate evaluation of trees stems
• Optimal processing of tree length harvested stems
• A good training tool for loggers

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HW-Buck (Hardwood Tree Stem Bucking Analyzer
Training Tool)
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12
3
10
16
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Veneer Log
Sawlog 1
Sawlog 2
OSB Material
Pulpwood
Waste
SRS/NERS joint project with Michigan Tech.
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HW-Buck

• Train the trainer to begin
• Then train loggers
• Or people bucking logs at mills

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Future Precision Tree Length Stem Processing
Bucking Computer
Scanner
Bucking
(Determine Shape and Find Internal Defects And
External Indicators)
Pulp/OSB Short Bolt (Dimension/Pallets) Sawlog
Veneer Log
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Potential Users of Automated Log Production
Operations

• Logging sites
• Concentration yards
• Sawmills

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To Reach Reality

• Combine with laser and other scanning systems
• Complete scanning RD to include external
  indicators
• Incorporate HW BUCK software
• Need bark on
• Design complete system

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In the Sawmill Future CT Log Scanning Systems
to Optimize Lumber Output
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CT Scanning Concepts
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To Reach Reality

• Fast accurate scanning is needed
• Fast data analysis and log reconstruction is
  needed
• A rugged system is required
• This all will happen

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High-level approach

• Preprocessing module
• Background removal
• Density normalization
• ANN based segmentation module
• Assign label to each foreground pixel
• Labels clear wood, knot, split, decay, bark
• Local neighborhoods radial distance
• Postprocessing module
• ANN output is typically good statistically, but
  visually should be improved
• Postprocessing rules are generated by user
• System uses those rules for future postprocessing
  needs

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ANN classifier
Each foreground pixel is assigned a labelclear
wood, knot, split, decay, or bark
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Results for Sugar Maple (2)
Original
Ground Truth
Postprocessed
Segmented
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Results for Red Oak (2)
Ground Truth
Original
Postprocessed
Segmented
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Overview of the Log Processing System -- Purdue
Univ. has funding
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Advanced and Future Processing .

• Advanced edging and trimming systems optimization
  system
• Rough lumber grading system
• Curve sawing hardwood logs
• Pallet cant grading and processing scanning
  systems
• Pallet part grading scanning systems
• Advanced lumber to parts manufacturing

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Studies have shown when Edging and Trimming up
to 40 percent loss in value
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Why Value Losses? --Edging and Trimming Decisions
are Complicated

• Size of board
• Cuttings
• of cuttings
• Species
• Grades
• value / grade
• Can be a matter of ¼ or ½

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Why Value Losses? Other Reasons

• Equipment may not be properly aligned
• Lasers saw blades
• Customer differences
• Domestic market
• Export market
• Operators are not NHLA trained graders graders
  at the end of the mill
• Current automated systems may not produce optimal
  boards

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Edging and Trimming Decisions are Complicated and
must be made quickly
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Future Scanning Computer Software for Edging
Trimming Hardwoods
Scanning
Optimum Board
Optimum Edging and Trimming
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Automation Options A Simple Edging System for
Hardwood Mills

• Laser profiling and gray-scale imaging provide
  data on one, or both, surfaces
• Defect recognition software automatically
  recognizes labels defect regions on those
  images
• Maximal E/T software determines the best cutting
  lines

Smart Camera
Lasers
From Headrig
To Edger
Or Resaw
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Add new scanning and software to current scanning
systems
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Another optimizer that could include our efforts
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To Reach Reality

• More accurate scanning is needed
• The wood is wet, rough, and changes color
• Complete the system
• Public efforts are stalled

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Rough Grading of Hardwood Lumber
From edging saw
Graded, sorted, and stacked
Trim Saw
Scanner
Graded and reprocessed
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Shift this grader to dry lumber
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An Industry Leader said that

• things will change the minute we can have a
  machine to accurately grade the product (lumber)
  and bar code it and designate a best application
  molding, furniture, flooring or whatever

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Our Blacksburg based research team has been
trying to address the industry needs
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Along with grading we want to determine the Best
Hardwood Lumber Uses (yield/value)

• Furniture
• Cabinets
• Flooring
• Mouldings
• Dimension
• Fixtures
• Export

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To do that we need to predict cutting yields for
best lumber uses
gang rip with floating blades
scan strips
auto chop saws
parts
finger joint shorts
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Our test scanning --3 image types that feeds our
grading software

• Two side lasers for intensity and tracheid
  images
• One downboard laser for profile Image

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Some Results -- Maple Grade 3C
Board 501
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Maple Grade 3C
Board 501
Rip-First
Chop-First
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Maple Grade 2C
Board 902
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Maple Grade 2C
Board 902
Rip-First
Chop-First
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Red Oak Grade 2C
Board 802
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Red Oak Grade 2C
Board 802
Rip-First
Chop-First
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Potential System

• Data for Each Board
• NHLA Grade
• Value
• Best potential use (flooring, mouldings,
  furniture, cabinets)
• Potential rip first cuttings
• Potential cross cut first cuttings

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Lumber Grading -- The Situation

• Our scanning is not perfect on surfaced lumber
• NHLA hardwood lumber grading software has been
  demonstrated
• ROMI simulated cuttings can be determined
• Best lumber uses are possible
• Integrated approach on our scanning system
• More software integration and lumber trials are
  needed and scheduled
• Always looking for support and lumber

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Curve-Sawing Hardwoods could be in Your Future
Why? - Increased Recovery - Increased
Value - Reduced Degrade
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Curve Sawing
Scrag saw opposing sides
Curve saw cant
Lumber pallet cants
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Multi-Purpose Curve Sawing Study
Harvest Thinnings
Tree length medium to small diameter stems
Forest stands needing thinning for forest health
Curve sawing may provide yields making thinnings
economical
Process to logs (most logs will have sweep)
Lumber pallet cants
Curve saw cant
Scrag saw opposing sides
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Curve sawing study logs
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Curve Sawing Could Make Thinning Hardwood Stands
More Viable
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Curve Sawing

• Gang saw technology that allows logs or cants
  with sweep to be cut along the natural line of
  curvature.

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Curve Sawing
Behind sash gang
Front sash gang
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Straight Sawing
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Curve Sawing Drying Study

• Curve vs. Straight sawn material
• Measure green warpage
• Measure dry warpage
• Oak lumber
• Poplar lumber

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Curve Sawing Conventional Saw Mill Logs How
many are curved?
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How Curved (Sweep) are Mixed Hardwood Sawlogs in
the Eastern US?

• From a 2003 study by Virginia Tech and our FS
  research unit we found over 1/3 of logs at
  sawmills have excessive yield reducing sweep

DEPARTMET OF WOOD SCIENCE FOREST PRODUCTS
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Sweep Summary of Study Logs
2/3 considered straight
Avg. 13
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We received a grant to continue this effort at
the normal sawmill level to study curve sawing
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Advanced and Future Processing .

• Pallet cant grading and processing scanning
  systems
• Pallet part grading scanning systems
• Advanced lumber to parts manufacturing

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Future Scanning System To Grade Pallet Cants (
Unsound Limit)
Pallet Parts
Pallet Cants
Ultrasound Scan
Grade 1 Better
Cull
Rot, Ring Shake, Unsound Knots, etc...
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Ultrasonic Scanning of Pallet Cants to Optimize
Value
Ultrasonic Scanner
Optimizing Chop Saw
48 Cant
48 Cant
Cull
Cull
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Optimized Sawing can Increase the Value of
Material Obtained from Each Cant
General sawing practice is to cut adjacent parts,
starting at one end of the cant
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Value-optimized sawing
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Other optimizing examples
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48
40
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Ultrasound Grading and Sorting Parts RD
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Advanced and Future Processing .

• Automated Rough Mill Processing Lumber to
  Furniture and Cabinet Parts

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An advanced rip first rough mill with scanning
automation
scan lumber for rip setup
gang rip with floating blades
scan strips
auto chop saws
parts
finger joint shorts
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Lumber ripping scanner
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Crosscut for bowed lumber
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Lumber transfer to gang rip saw
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Multi-width strips from the rip saw
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Ripped strips transferring to defect scanner
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Output side of multi-sensor scanner
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Screen view of crosscut solution
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Strips approaching crosscut saw
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Twin crosscut saws
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Automatic part sorting
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Part inspection and sorting
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Salvage crosscut
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Salvage ripping
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Salvaged parts go to inspection and sorting
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Salvage finger jointing material sorting
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Finger jointed strips increased yields
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Any questions?

• Advanced and Future Processing You Need to Be
  Aware Of
• Please contact me for more information