实孔径成像声纳在海底油气管线探测中的应用

利用成像声纳对油气管线进行探测,是重要的声学测量技术手段之一。侧扫声纳和环扫声纳是两种典型的实孔径成像声纳,介绍了这两种声纳的成像特点,分别从搭载平台、扫测特点、参数显示和声图特征等4个方面进行了比较,结合工程实例给出了两种声纳对海底油气管线探测的应用效果,分析比较了二者的优缺点。所得结论对于了解和掌握侧扫声纳和环扫声纳设备性能,进行海底油气管线检测和状态评估具有重要的工程实用意义。     

Motion-Compensation Improvement for Widebeam, Multiple-Receiver SAS Systems

The effect that uncompensated motion errors have on synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) imagery can be severe. Time-domain beamforming SAS reconstruction is able to compensate arbitrary track errors, but the more efficient frequency-domain reconstruction algorithms, such as the range-Doppler, chirp-scaling, and wave number (aka range migration or Stolt-mapping) algorithms do not allow for simple compensation, especially for widebeam sonars. Data processed via these block algorithms is usually compensated before azimuth compression in a computationally inexpensive preprocessing step. Unfortunately, this compensation assumes a narrowbeam geometry, causing blurring in high-resolution images collected with widebeam sonars. In this paper, we demonstrate a new technique for compensation of large, but known, motion errors in data collected with widebeam geometry sonars. The technique relies on obtaining angle-of-arrival information from the multiple-receiver array configuration typical in high-resolution SAS systems. The new method of compensating for motion errors was found to significantly outperform the previous techniques in a simulation of point-reflector imagery.      

大深度近海底精细地形地貌探测技术

船载低频多波束测深声纳、侧扫声纳可以对深海海底地形地貌进行快速、高效、大面积探测,但其测量精度有限,难以满足深海科学考察、资源勘探开发对高精度海底地形地貌的需求。随着各类大深度水下移动载体(如深海拖体、水下机器人、遥控潜器和载人潜水器)的涌现,特别是各类耐高压测绘声纳的商业化,使大深度近海底精细地形地貌探测成为可能。首先分析了多波束测深声纳、侧扫声纳和测深侧扫声纳等3种测绘声纳的基本原理,然后分别介绍了各类测绘声纳的国内外典型商业化产品,并通过典型实例分析了其在大深度近海底精细测绘中的应用情况。     

Analysis of swath bathymetry sonar accuracy

The practical limitations of many bottom mapping sonars lie in their ability to accurately estimate the angle of arrival. This paper addresses the accuracy of angle estimation when employed to determine the location of an extended target such as the bottom. A Gaussian model is assumed for the bottom backscatter and the corresponding Cramer-Rao lower bound for the variance of the angle estimate is determined for multi-element linear arrays. The paper focuses on determining the performance of high-resolution swath bathymetry sonars and, therefore, concentrates on the ability to determine bottom location with short pulses. Two error mechanisms, footprint shift and uncorrelated noise, are identified as important contributors to measurement errors. The two-element interferometric sonar configuration is investigated in detail. It is shown through the use of probability distributions, the Cramer-Rao bound, and simulation that it is difficult to get a good estimate of performance through simulation alone. Performance enhancement through pre-estimation and post-estimation averaging of multiple snapshots and changes in performance with pulse length and pulse rise time are also considered. Bottom estimation performance employing multi-element arrays is compared and contrasted with that of the two-element interferometric array. It is determined that there is little benefit associated with the multi-element array in terms of angle estimation performance alone. However, when other considerations such as angle ambiguities, multiple angles of arrival, and physical shortcomings associated with practical arrays are taken into account, the multi-element array is favored.     

Guest Editorial Special Issue on Synthetic Aperture Sonar

The eight papers in this special issue focus on synthetic aperture sonar. The focus is on signal processing and performance characterization for synthetic aperture imaging sonars, with emphasis on systems that operate in stripmap mode--a monostatic approach utilizing broadside beams, and which represents the majority of designs currently seeing practical application.     

A novel array of elliptic ring radiators

An array of elliptic ring radiators is proposed which generates a fan-type beam with controllable sidelobe levels. Such an array has applications in specialized acoustic systems such as sidescan sonars, sonars for fish finding and stock assessment, obstacle avoidance systems, and others. Two possible approaches to the design are presented. One approach utilizes a mapping which transforms a radiation pattern generated by a circular ring array to that of an elliptic ring array. This approach takes advantage of methodologies developed for the design of circular ring arrays. The other approach uses the concept of an equivalent linear array. This approach benefits from existing design techniques developed for linear arrays. It requires only simple matrix operations and does not involve any optimization. The design examples presented demonstrate that a fan-type beam with sidelobes suppressed to more than 40 dB in all possible directions is achievable     

Synthetic aperture sonar for seabed imaging: relative merits ofnarrow-band and wide-band approached

The advantages of using wideband sonar systems in underwater acoustical imaging by means of synthetic aperture (side-looking) sonars are described and illustrated through simulation examples. The simulations are conducted for two cases of sonar platform motion: perfect trajectory and disturbed trajectory. Several schemes used for wideband synthetic aperture processing are investigated and their relative merits (resolution and complexity) in the case of both disturbed and perfect trajectories are evaluated. Quantitative image evaluation is initially achieved through the evaluation of performance as regards resolution. The problems involved in the definition of the image quality are discussed     

自主式水下机械手系统研究

本文从水下机械手的总体设计，关节直流电机的驱动和调速，手臂上声纳的水下搜索与跟踪，机械手系统的智能控制和电源等几个方面，介绍了有关自主式水下机械手系统的研究，可为研制自主式水下作业系统提供参考     

Processing and analysis of Simrad multibeam sonar data

The common approach to analysing data collected with multibeam and sidescan sonars is to visually interpret charts of contoured bathymetry and mosaics of seabed images. However, some of the information content is lost by processing the data into charts because this involves some averaging; the analysis might uncover more information if done on the data at an earlier stage in the processing. Motivated by this potential, I have created a software system which can be used to analyse data collected with Simrad EM1000 (shallow water) and EM12 (deep water) multibeam sonars, as well as to generate bathymetry contour charts and backscatter mosaics. The system includes data preprocessing, such as navigation filtering, depth filtering (removal of outlying values), and amplitude mapping using the multibeam bathymetry to correctly position image pixels across the swath. The data attributes that can be analysed include the orientation and slope of the seafloor, and the mean signal strength for each sounding. To determine bathymetry attributes such as slope, the soundings across a number of beams and across a series of pings are grouped and a least-squares plane fitted to them. Bathymetric curvature is obtained by detrending the grouped data using the least-squares plane and fitting a paraboloid to the residuals. The magnitudes and signs of the paraboloid's coefficients reveal depressions and hills and their orientations. Furthermore, the seafloor geology can be classified using a simple combination of these attributes. For example, flat-lying sediments can be classified where the backscatter, slope and curvature fall below specified values.     

Conflict of interest in research on anthropogenic noise and marine mammals: Does funding bias conclusions?

The U.S. Navy, whose sonars kill marine mammals, provides approximately 50% of the funds for marine mammal research worldwide. We examined six reviews of research on the effects of anthropogenic sound on marine mammals, as well as the primary papers cited in the reviews. These reviews cite references showing noise has no effect on marine mammals at an increasing frequency as their funding moves from a conservation organization to independent to partial U.S. military sources. Primary papers are 2.3 times more likely to be cited in the reviews as concluding no effect of noise if the research was militarily-funded than if not. Thus, conflict of interest may have led to a misrepresentation of the effects of noise on marine mammals in both the primary and secondary literature, and thus misinform public policy decisions.     

Self-monitoring sonar transducer array with internal accelerometers

To achieve the maximum detection range for active sonars, it is desirable to maximize their acoustic power. In attempting to do so, there are two limitations which are caused by cavitation on the face of the transducer and an interaction effect between transducer elements of the array. To avoid these limitations, a method is proposed for driving the array elements in phase with a uniform velocity to yield the desired radiation. For this purpose, a sonar transducer array which has internal accelerometers for monitoring the motion of the transducer element is being developed. This paper presents an outline of this sonar array and a method of high-speed numerical calculation which was developed for the prediction of the radiation characteristics of the array using the fractional Fourier transform algorithm     

Frontiers in Seafloor Mapping and Visualization

Over the past few years there have been remarkable and concomitant advances in sonar technology, positioning capabilities, and computer processing power that have revolutionized the mapping, imaging and exploration of the seafloor. Future developments must involve all aspects of the “seafloor mapping system,” including, sonars, ancillary sensors (motion sensors, positioning systems, and sound speed sensors), platforms upon which they are mounted, and the products that are produced. Current trends in sonar development involve the use of innovative new transducer materials and the application of sophisticated processing techniques including focusing algorithms that dynamically compensate for the curvature of the wavefront in the nearfield and thus allow narrower beam widths (higher lateral resolution) at close ranges . Future developments will involve “hybrid”, phase-comparison/beam-forming sonars, the development of broad-band “chirp” multibeam sonars, and perhaps synthetic aperture multibeam sonars. The inability to monitor the fine-scale spatial and temporal variability of the sound speed structure of the water column is often a limiting factor in the production of accurate maps of the seafloor; improvements in this area will involve continuous monitoring devices as well as improved ocean models and perhaps tomography. Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV’s) and particularly Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV’s) will become more important as platforms for seafloor mapping systems. There will also be great changes in the products produced from seafloor mapping and the processing necessary to create them. New processing algorithms are being developed that take advantage of the density of multibeam sonar data and use statistically robust techniques to “clean” massive data sets very rapidly. A range of approaches are being explored to use multibeam sonar bathymetry and imagery to extract quantitative information about seafloor properties, including those relevant to fisheries habitat. The density of these data also enable the use of interactive 3-D visualization and exploration tools specifically designed to facilitate the interpretation and analysis of very large, complex, multi-component spatial data sets. If properly georeferenced and treated, these complex data sets can be presented in a natural and intuitive manner that allows the simple integration and fusion of multiple components without compromise to the quantitative aspects of the data and opens up new worlds of interactive exploration to a multitude of users.     

Shallow-water imaging multibeam sonars: A new tool for investigating seafloor processes in the coastal zone and on the continental shelf

Hydrographic quality bathymetry and quantitative acoustic backscatter data are now being acquired in shallow water on a routine basis using high frequency multibeam sonars. The data provided by these systems produce hitherto unobtainable information about geomorphology and seafloor geologic processes in the coastal zone and on the continental shelf.Before one can use the multibeam data for hydrography or quantitative acoustic backscatter studies, however, it is essential to be able to correct for systematic errors in the data. For bathymetric data, artifacts common to deep-water systems (roll, refraction, positioning) need to be corrected. In addition, the potentially far greater effects of tides, heave, vessel lift/squat, antenna motion and internal time delays become of increasing importance in shallower water. Such artifacts now cause greater errors in hydrographic data quality than bottom detection. Many of these artifacts are a result of imperfect motion sensing, however, new methods such as differential GPS hold great potential for resolving such limitations. For backscatter data, while the system response is well characterised, significant post processing is required to remove residual effects of imaging geometry, gain adjustments and water column effects. With the removal of these system artifacts and the establishment of a calibrated test site in intertidal regions (where the seabed may be intimately examined by eye) one can build up a sediment classification scheme for routine regional seafloor identification.When properly processed, high frequency multibeam sonar data can provide a view of seafloor geology and geomorphology at resolutions of as little as a few decimetres. Specific applications include quantitative estimation of sediment transport rates in large-scale sediment waves, volume effects of iceberg scouring, extent and style of seafloor mass-wasting and delineation of structural trends in bedrock. In addition, the imagery potentially provides a means of quantitative classification of seafloor lithology, allowing sedimentologists the ability to examine spatial distributions of seabed sediment type without resorting to subjective estimation or prohibitively expensive bottom-sampling programs. Using Simrad EM100 and EM1000 sonars as an example, this paper illustrates the nature and scale of possible artifacts, the necessary post-processing steps and shows specific applications of these sonars.     

Acoustic imagery using a multibeam bathymetric system

Historically, measurement and collection of deep‐ocean acoustic imagery are accomplished by towed sidescan systems. Recently, work has been performed to extract acoustic imagery from current hull‐mounted wide‐swath bathymetric sonars with minimal hardware modification. Past work of deriving acoustic imagery from swath sonars has been performed primarily with SeaBeam's sixteen 2^2/3 ° preformed beams. The Navy is investigating the feasibility of extracting an acoustic image from the Sonar Array Survey Systems (SASS), a high‐resolution (1^o beams) wide‐fan (90°) bathymetric system. Due to the large data volume (approximately 1 MB per ping), SASS normally discards the raw acoustic returns once bathymetry is calculated. In early 1991 the Naval Air Development Center (NADC) installed the hardware on board the USNS Maury to capture and record the raw acoustic signal (inphase and quadrature) from the SASS's 144 hydrophones for later inversion to a backscatter image. Preliminary qualitative mosaics of the sidescan images show promising results and warrant further development.     

水声导航、定位技术发展趋势

水声导航、定位技术在海洋科学和海洋工程中有着广泛的应用,近年来已逐渐向高精度、多传感器、多手段融合的方向发展.本文以导航、定位声纳的发展为关注对象,概述了水声导航、定位技术在技术前沿上的发展状况,提炼出其技术发展趋势,并介绍了水声导航、定位技术的应用前景.     

A novel array of ring radiators

An array of ring radiators which generates a symmetric search-light-type narrow beam with greatly reduced sidelobes is proposed. Such a narrow beam can find several applications related to acoustic remote sensing, telemetry, and specialized sonars. A design procedure which benefits from design techniques developed for linear arrays is detailed. The developed methodology requires only simple matrix operation and does not involve nonlinear optimization. The results indicate that radiation patterns with arbitrary sidelobe suppression can be achieved     

A synthetic aperture sonar system capable of operating at high speed and in turbulent media

Despite their potential ability to produce highly resolved images of the seabed, synthetic aperture sonars are not widely used. The primary reason for this restricted use is that most synthetic aperture systems are based on the radiation and detection of short-duration modulated pulses. Due to the low speed of sound in water, the pulse repetition frequency is low and so it has been difficult to maintain the required pulse-to-pulse phase coherence. This paper describes a new approach to synthetic aperture sonars based on continuous transmission with some form of frequency modulation. That is, a sonar that transmits and receives continuously but uses some form of frequency coding (in this case a linear frequency sweep) to determine range. Using a continuous transmission frequency modulated sonar it is possible to make a synthetic aperture sonar that can produce coherent apertures many wavelengths long. In addition to the combination of synthetic apertures and continuous transmission frequency modulation, further modifications are suggested to reduce the effect of lateral towfish movement and the effects of medium turbulence resulting in random path-length variations.     

A voting-based approach for fast object recognition in underwateracoustic images

This paper describes a voting-based approach for the fast automatic recognition of man-made objects and related attitude estimation in underwater acoustic images generated by forward-looking sonars or acoustic cameras. In general, the continuous analysis of sequences of images is a very heavy task for human operators and this is due to the poor quality of acoustic images. Hence, algorithms able to recognize an object on the basis of a priori knowledge of the model and to estimate its attitude with reference to a global coordinate system are very useful to facilitate underwater operations like object manipulation or vehicle navigation. The proposed method is capable of recognizing objects and estimating their two-dimensional attitude by using information coming from boundary segments and their angular relations. It is based on a simple voting approach directly applied to the edge discontinuities of underwater acoustic images, whose quality is usually affected by some undesired effects such as object blurring, speckle noise, and geometrical distortions degrading the edge detection. The voting approach is robust, with respect to these effects, so that good results are obtained even with images of very poor quality. The sequences of simulated and real acoustic images are presented in order to test the validity of the proposed method in terms of average estimation error and computational load     

C3D及其与传统侧扫声纳的比较

C3D是Benthos公司近年来推出的基于CAATI技术的一种新型测深侧扫声纳系统。从工作原理、技术参数、数据采集与后处理平台以及实测数据等方面将C3D和传统侧扫声纳进行了对比。对比表明两者的工作原理不同,C3D的采集数据密度更高,对采集和处理软件要求比传统声纳高,最后对两者采集的数据进行了分析。通过对比,为侧扫声纳系统的选用和引进提供了依据。