基于矢量信号处理的水声定位系统

将传统的水声定位系统与矢量水听器相结合，设计了一种全新的轻便型长基线被动水声定位系统。介绍了系统的组成和工作原理，并结合近年来出现的矢量信号处理技术，设计了新的实时信号处理软件。经湖试和海试，系统的可行性得到了初步的验证。     

Spectral spreading from surface bubble motion

At low frequencies, surface bubbles contribute to acoustic backscattering in aggregate, and the motion of these bubble masses causes spectral spreading of the acoustic signals. This motion of the bubbles entrained in the surface waves is used to obtain the power spectrum of a low-frequency surface-scattered signal at a low grazing angle. A spectral distribution of the deterministic surface drift, augmented by breaking wave crests, is developed for the wave frequency components that are actively breaking. This motion is combined with the random motion in a wave cycle to predict the spectral widths of low-angle backscattered sound. To permit comparisons with measured data, convolutions of these spectra with simple square pulses of various durations are performed     

Modeling the generation and gravity-capillary waves using an underwater sound source

This is an experimental study of the acoustic method of surface-wave excitation using an underwater source of high-frequency (950 kHz) sound. The surface waves are excited at the sound-beam modulation frequency (3–55 Hz). For a normal fall onto the free surface, the modulated sound beam efficiently generates waves in the gravity-capillary range. This provides flexible electronic control of the main wave parameters (frequency and amplitude) in the packet and continuous modes. The amplitude-frequency characteristics of the process of surface-wave generation were obtained by numerical calculations (based on equations for the rate of acoustic flux and propagation of gravity-capillary surface waves) and by experiments (based on surface wave measurements by optical and contact methods). Both values are very consistent: on the background of a similar monotonic attenuation with frequency, they have a local dip near the minimum of the phase velocity and oscillation in the frequency range above 20 Hz. The experiments on the excitation of wave packets by single acoustic messages with varying lengths and powers, as well as by falling water drops, indicated that, in all cases, the phase characteristics are satisfactorily consistent with one another and the time needed for the signal to arrive at the measurement point is determined by the group velocity.     

The propagation of an acoustic pulse in a near-ground atmospheric waveguide

A wave theory of propagation of an acoustic pulse in a moving stratified atmospheric layer above the ground with a finite impedance of an underlying ground surface is developed. The shapes of acoustic signals in a near-ground atmospheric waveguide, which are formed due to temperature inversion and a vertical shear of the wind velocity, are calculated based on this theory. These signals are compared with those measured during the experiments where vertical profiles of the wind velocity and temperature in an atmospheric boundary layer have been continuously controlled using a sodar, a temperature profile meter, and acoustic anemometers or thermometers mounted on a 56-meter-high mast. The joint action of a near-ground acoustic waveguide, the impedance of the underlying surface, and a vertical layered structure of the boundary atmospheric layer on a signal shape far from the acoustic source are studied.     

Seafloor profiling by a wideband sonar: simulation,frequency-response optimization, and results of a brief sea test

An ahead-looking probe of some kind, optical or acoustic, is critical when one is attempting seafloor exploration from a mobile platform. A single-frequency, split aperture sonar system can be used for this purpose, but a wideband monopulse sonar offers many advantages. It computes a running estimate of the vertical directional cosine of the source of the echo, and can thus reveal the positions of multiple wave scatterers as long as their echoes can still be time resolved. Theoretical studies of its performance have been made previously, but were directly applicable only to extremely simple seafloor geometries. A new time-domain digital simulation that largely circumvents this limitation has been developed. The simulation also provides a means for testing the theory and optimizing system parameters. The reverberation model does not account for some features of acoustic backscattering such as diffraction, but it is believed to be adequate for the investigation of most signal processing aspects of the sonar system. The theory of the simulation is developed and several examples are presented and discussed. In addition, some preliminary results are presented from a sea test that used the air-sea interface as a surrogate seafloor     

A long‐range and high‐resolution underwater acoustic positioning system

Abstract

It is desired to track the location of an underwater data collecting platform using acoustic range data. A long‐range and high‐resolution acoustic system for underwater locating has been investigated. The system provides continuous and highly accurate tracking of a platform referenced to bottom‐mounted buoys. Each reference buoy contains an acoustic transponder, which is used to obtain ranging data from the transponder to the platform. The transponder has a signal source that is phase‐modulated by a maximal‐length binary sequence and a correlation processing unit to be capable of detecting received acoustic signals with high SNR in a noisy environment or in attenuation due to long‐range propagation, and to identify multipath acoustic signals. The acoustic system has been designed and sea tests tried. The results of that experiment have yielded capability of a submeter underwater acoustic positioning system.     

A simulation tool for high data-rate acoustic communication in ashallow-water, time-varying channel

The paper discusses the development of a simulation tool to model high data-rate acoustic communication in shallow water. The simulation tool is able to generate synthetic time series of signals received at a transducer array after transmission across a shallow-water communication channel. The simulation tool is suitable for testing advanced signal processing techniques for message recovery. A channel model has been developed based on the physical aspects of the acoustic channel. Special emphasis has been given to fluctuations of the signal transmission caused by time-varying multipath effects. At shorter ranges, the temporal variations are dominated by acoustic scattering from the moving sea surface. Therefore, the channel model produces a coherence function which may be interpreted as a time-varying reflection coefficient for the surface scattered acoustical path. A static, range-independent ray model identifies the significant multipaths, and the surface path is modulated with the time-varying reflection coefficient. The advantages and limitations of the channel model are discussed and assumptions necessary to overcome the limitations are emphasised. Based on the assumptions, an algorithm has been developed and implemented to model how a binary message will be modulated when transmitted by a transducer, is distorted in the channel and finally is received by a transducer array     

A two-frequency hydroacoustic scatterometer for bubble scatteringinvestigations

High-frequency bubble layer scattering investigations require the measurement of the intensity of backscattered sound and the corresponding depth of the scatterers below the moving surface. Especially at high sea state conditions and high acoustic frequencies, bubbles acoustically mask the surface, i.e., the surface return cannot be detected. However, this environmental condition is the most interesting one in bubble scattering investigations and a reliable method is required to determine the range of the scatterers to the surface displacement. A method for the determination of the vertical profiling of acoustic scattering in the presence of bubbles at high sea state conditions is presented. It is based on the transmission of a low-frequency signal alternately to the high-frequency signal at which the scattering investigations are performed. The only information that is extracted from the low-frequency echo is the onset of the surface return. It is used to compute the true depth of scatterers at the high frequency. Experiments were conducted to determine the optimum low frequency at which the detection of the surface onset in the presence of a high bubble concentration is ensured. A screening ratio is defined to give a measure of the acoustic masking of the sea surface. It is depicted for an extreme wind condition (20 m/s) for the frequency range of 5-25 kHz and as a function of wind speed for 50 kHz measurements. Selected results of subsurface bubble scattering at 50 kHz from experiments under open sea conditions are presented for the wind speed regime from 9 to 22 m/s. Additionally, the two-frequency scatterometer is used to measure sea state characteristics simultaneously to the scattering investigations by remote sensing techniques     

基于圆型基阵的水下声信标搜寻仪性能测试

基于声信标信号特征的快速识别技术、远距离微弱信号的快速定位技术、空域时域组合的多目标分辨技术,研发了基于圆型基阵的水下声信标搜寻仪"天科寻海一号"。通过消声水池、海上现场等试验,对其各项指标和整体性能进行了测试。该设备探测距离达3 000 m、方向分辨力达0.5°,具备同时搜寻多个声信标的能力。通过实时交会定位方法,可对大面积海域进行快速搜索及准确定位,具有重要的工程应用价值。     

On Experience in using the remote acoustic method of partial reflections in studies of the lower troposphere

Using the phenomenon of the partial reflection of acoustic waves from anisotropic wind-velocity and temperature inhomogeneities in the lower troposphere is justified in determining the structure of these inhomogeneities. The data (obtained with the method of bistatic acoustic sounding) on signals reflected from stratified inhomogeneities in the lower 600-m layer of the troposphere are given. A detonation-type pulsed acoustic source was used. The methods of isolating a small (in amplitude) reflected signal against the background of noise and determining the reflecting-layer height and the partial-reflection coefficient from the measured parameters (time delay and amplitude) of a reflected signal are presented. The method of estimating the vertical gradients of the effective sound speed and the squared acoustic refractive index from the partial-reflection coefficient previously calculated is described on the basis of an Epstein transition-layer model. The indicated parameters are experimentally estimated for concrete cases of recording reflected signals. A comparison of our estimates with independent analogous data simultaneously obtained for the same parameters with monitoring instruments (a sodar and a temperature profiler) has yielded satisfactory results.     

Analysis of optimal conditions for recording signals when studying the atmospheric boundary layer with the acoustic method of partial reflection

Equations for the coefficient of partial reflection K from stratified inhomogeneities in the atmospheric boundary layer have been derived on the basis of the Epstein transition and symmetrical layer models as functions of three dimensionless parameters, i.e., the relative layer altitude, its relative thickness, and the relative variations in the effective sound speed in a layer. The equations have been obtained for the relative layer altitude at which the total internal reflection appears; the behavior of the function K is studied at close altitudes. Significant weakening of the dependence of coefficient K on the relative layer thickness in these conditions is shown, which makes it possible to record partially reflected signals in a wide range of wave-lengths or frequencies of the sounding signal. In other cases, the coefficient of partial reflection K strongly depends on the layer thickness. According to experimental data on variations in the amplitude of received acoustic signals with an increase in the source-detector distance, a technique for the parameterization of the additional impedance attenuation of sound that propagates over the earth’s surface has been developed, and these parameters have been experimentally estimated for different stratification conditions and sounding signal frequencies. Many records of background acoustic noises typical for one or another measurement sites have been distinguished and classified, a technique for estimating the minimum signal amplitude distinguishable against noises has been developed, and the corresponding estimates have been made. Based on these data and the specifications of three different industrial acoustic sources, the parameter limits provided by these sources have been estimated for the method of partial reflection.     

Digital underwater acoustic voice communications

This paper describes the design of an underwater acoustic diver communication system controlled by a digital signal processor. The speech signal transmission rate is compressed by using linear predictive coding (LPC) and the extracted parameters are transmitted through the water to a synchronized receiver by employing digital pulse position modulation (DPPM). The pulse position in each time frame is estimated by an energy detection and decision algorithm which enables the received LPC parameters to be recovered and used to synthesize the speech signal     

Wave measurements by pressure transducers using artificial neural networks

Underwater ultrasonic acoustic transducers are frequently used in ocean wave measurements as they measure surface level using acoustic waves. However, their effectiveness can be severely affected in rough sea conditions, when bubbles generated by breaking waves interfere with their acoustic signals. When the seas are rough, one therefore often has to rely on a pressure transducer, which is generally used as a back-up for the acoustic wave gauge. A pressure transfer function is then used to obtain the surface wave information. Alternatively, the present study employed an artificial neural network to convert the pressure signal into significant wave height, significant wave period, maximum wave height, and spectral peakedness parameter using data obtained from various water depths. The results showed that, for water depths greater than 20 m, the wave parameters obtained from the artificial neural network were significantly closer to those obtained by the acoustic measurements than those obtained by using a linear pressure transfer function. Moreover, for a given water depth, the wave heights estimated by the network model from pressure data were not as good as those estimated by linear wave theory for large wave heights (above a 4 m significant wave height in this study). This can be improved if the training data set has more records with large wave heights.     

Forward Scattering Observation With Partially Coherent Spatial Processing of Vertical Array Signals in Shallow Water

In this paper, we address the problem of detecting an inhomogeneity in shallow water by observing changes in the acoustic field as the inhomogeneity passes between an acoustic source and vertical line array of receivers. A signal processing scheme is developed to detect the perturbed field in the presence of the much stronger primary source signal, and to estimate such parameters as the time when the inhomogeneity crosses the source-receiver path, its velocity, and its size. The effectiveness of incoherent, coherent, and partially coherent spatial processing of the array signals is evaluated using models and data obtained from experiments in a lake. The effect of different bottom types is also considered, and it is shown that partially coherent processing can have a significant advantage depending on the bottom type. Estimates of the minimum input signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) for which the diffracted signal can be observed are presented.     

一个水声扩频通信系统设计与实现

严重的多途衰落、多普勒频偏是水声通信中引起误码的主要原因。低功耗、远距离、高隐蔽性、低信噪比检测、高可靠性的数据传输是水声通信的一个发展方向。设计并实现了一个水声扩频通信系统,有效地解决了以上问题,并采用快速相关算法,代替传统的矢量与矩阵相乘运算,极大地减少了程序的运行量,从而实时地处理接收信号。通过湖试和海试,验证了此通信系统的优良性能。     

Potential performance of parametric communications

From a designer viewpoint, a parametric array should not appear different from any other type of acoustic transducer and should be described by a limited set of design equations together with their range of validity. In this paper, these design equations are stated and discussed. They are used to optimize the acoustic parameters of an underwater communication system using parametric transduction and to evaluate its performance in terms of signal-to-noise ratio and data-rate limits as a function of transmission range. It turns out that, for a maximum data transmission rate at a given range, there is a set of optimum design parameters which is a function of the array size only. This means that, once given an operational range, the primary frequency, the electrical power, the maximum acoustic source level, and the directionality of the transducer can be deduced directly from the array diameter     

Spatial modulation experiments in the underwater acoustic channel

A modulation technique for increasing the reliable data rate achievable by an underwater acoustic communication system is presented and demonstrated. The technique, termed spatial modulation, seeks to control the spatial distribution of signal energy such that the single physical ocean channel supports multiple parallel communication channels. Given a signal energy constraint, a communication architecture with access to parallel channels will have increased capacity and reliability as compared to one with access to a single channel. Results from two experiments demonstrate higher obtainable data rates and power throughput for a system employing spatial modulation than for one that does not. The demonstrated benefits were characterized by an equivalent SNR gain of over 5 dB in the first experiment. In the second experiment, using two element source and receiver arrays with apertures of 0.9 m, a coherently modulated signal was shown to offer nearly 50% greater capacity by using spatial modulation than by using temporal modulation alone.     

Coastal acoustic tomography system and its field application

The coastal acoustic tomography system (CATS), composed of five moored acoustic stations, has been constructed to measure current fields. The system is developed with special considerations in mind, including the use of Global Positioning System clock signals in the synchronization of the system clock timing among the multiple acoustic stations, and the use of the differently coded Gold sequences to identify the acoustic signals corresponding to individual stations from a received signal. The CATS was successfully applied to map the structure of strongly nonlinear tidal currents in the coastal sea. In spite of the limited spatial resolution caused by inadequate sound transmission data, the two-dimensional tidal vortices features of growth, translation, and decay processes are reconstructed through an inverse analysis of the acoustic travel time obtained among the station pairs. It is evident that the CATS is a powerful tool for measuring variable current fields generated in the coastal seas