Seafloor segmentation using angular backscatter responses obtained at sea with a forward-looking sonar system

Abstract

a b s t r a c tSegmentation of the seabed is addressed by exploiting the local angular backscatter acoustic responses of the bottom. The study is based on data collected at sea with an experimental front-scan sonar system (COSMOS -Project partially funded by the European Commission in the MAST III program -Contract n°MAS3-CT97-0090 -DG12 -ESCY). Data were recorded during a three day survey in the Mediterranean Sea in high variability sediment areas. The front-looking geometry of the COSMOS system enables the collection of the local angular responses of the bottom over a wide range of incidence angles. The angular responses are projected on a principal components basis and subsequently classified by means of a density-based cluster identification method. The resulting segmentation maps delineate properly homogeneous zones of the seafloor that are in agreement with the ground-truth information provided by samples collected at sea.

Recommendations for improved and coherent acquisition and processing of backscatter data from seafloor-mapping sonars

“…2, 3). Substantial efforts have been made in trying to obtain seafloor type or physical characteristics from the measurement of the backscatter level (e.g., Brown and Blondel 2009;De Moustier and Matsumoto 1993;Kloser et al 2010;Lamarche et al 2011;McGonigle and Collier 2014;Preston et al 2001), in many cases according to its angle dependence (Haniotis et al 2015). Some original applications include recognition and mapping algae (McGonigle et al 2011), oil spills (Medialdea et al 2008), or hydrothermal vents and seeps (Durand et al 2006;Klaucke et al 2008).…”

A review of seagrass detection, mapping and monitoring applications using acoustic systems

“…On the other hand, a survey grade forward-looking multibeam sonar has been developed within the European MAST III program (COSMOS Project) (Cervenka, 1998). The developed forward-looking multibeam sonar has been applied for seafloor segmentation using angular backscatter responses (Haniotis, Cervenka, Negreira, & Marchal, 2015).…”

Review: Marine Seismic And Side-Scan Sonar Investigations For Seabed Identification With Sonar System

“…Because of the discrete steps involved by the sequential pings, the angular sampling of the bottom within the ranges described in the previous section is not continuous (Haniotis et al, 2015). We are looking here at the optimal binning of the grazing angles {gi} used to sort the backscatter angular responses, to provide a gapless coverage.…”