Tools
Software
IFML maintains research-oriented software tools that support digitization, visualization, and analysis workflows. Tools are tracked in a structured registry that records development status, scope, and dependencies. Status labels (Alpha / Beta) indicate intended use and validation scope, not a guarantee of fitness for any particular purpose.
DART — Dendro Analysis & Reporting Tool
BetaA specialized desktop workbench for the manual annotation and quantitative analysis of high-resolution tree-ring imagery.
DART replaces caliper-based manual measuring with a precise digital environment for “on-screen” dendrochronology, handling multi-gigabyte archival scans that typically overwhelm standard image viewers. Sub-pixel calibration, vector annotation, and standard RWL/CSV exports for downstream crossdating and chronology toolchains.
DART: ChipLab
BetaA desktop application that detects, measures, and species-classifies woodchips from flatbed scanner images — fully offline.
A companion to DART for wood-products research and mill QA. ChipLab converts a single flatbed scan into per-chip geometry (length, width, area, aspect ratio) and per-chip species predictions with confidence scores, using Mask R-CNN segmentation with SAM2 human-in-the-loop correction. Runs entirely offline; no data leaves the machine.
FOCUS — Flatbed Optical Capture & Utility Suite
In DevelopmentA Windows application for driving an Epson Expression 13000XL flatbed scanner (with Transparency Unit) for bulk archival and scientific digitization of photographs, photo albums, dendrochronology specimens, and film.
Built for archival color fidelity and scientific measurement validity: IT8-target color calibration with cross-session drift tracking for both reflective and transparency light paths, embedded/sidecar metadata capture (manual, barcode, or batch CSV), and bulk scanning with hierarchical page/item auto-split and an operator review step before anything is finalized.
IFML Archive Manager
AlphaA custom Python-based toolkit for running the digitization workflow.
Automates the ingestion of high-resolution TIFF scans, preserves documented color and metadata attributes, and generates web-accessible Access Packages for deposit on Zenodo.
Software Validity & Reproducibility
Guidance for Use
- Validity: IFML software is provided as-is for research support. Outputs may contain errors and should be independently validated prior to publication or decision-critical use.
- Reproducibility: Outputs may vary across operating systems, dependency versions, calibration choices, and model weights. Document software versions and dataset identifiers in any derived work.
- System Requirements: Standard desktop environment (Windows 10+ / macOS 12+), 8 GB+ RAM, SSD storage recommended.