Attitude-trajectory estimation for forward looking multi-beam sonar based on acoustic image registration

This work considers the processing of acoustic data from a multi-beam Forward Looking Sonar (FLS) on a moving underwater platform to estimate the platform’s attitude and trajectory. We propose an algorithm to produce an estimate of the attitude-trajectory for a FLS based on the optical flow between consecutive sonar frames. The attitude-trajectory can be used to locate an underwater platform, such as an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV), to a degree of accuracy suitable for navigation. It can also be used to build a mosaic of the underwater scene. The estimation is performed in three steps. Firstly, a selection of techniques based on the optical flow model are used to estimate a pixel displacement map (DM) between consecutive sonar frames represented in the native polar (range/bearing) format. The second step finds the best match between the estimated DM and DMs for a set of modeled sonar sensor motions. To reduce complexity, it is proposed to describe the DM with a small parameter vector derived from the displacement distribution. Thus, an estimate of the incremental sensor motion between frames is made. Finally, using a weighted regularized spline technique, the incremental inter-frame motions are integrated into an attitude-trajectory for the sonar sensor. To assess the accuracy of the attitude-trajectory estimate, it is used to register FLS frames from a field experiment dataset and build a high-quality mosaic of the underwater scene

Multibranch Autocorrelation Method for Doppler Estimation in Underwater Acoustic Channels

In underwater acoustic (UWA) communications, Doppler estimation is one of the major stages in a receiver. Two Doppler estimation methods are often used: the cross-ambiguity function (CAF) method and the single-branch autocorrelation (SBA) method. The former results in accurate estimation but with a high complexity, whereas the latter is less complicated but also less accurate. In this paper, we propose and investigate a multibranch autocorrelation (MBA) Doppler estimation method. The proposed method can be used in communication systems with periodically transmitted pilot signals or repetitive data transmission. For comparison of the Doppler estimation methods, we investigate an orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) communication system in multiple dynamic scenarios using the Waymark simulator, allowing virtual UWA signal transmission between moving transmitter and receiver. For the comparison, we also use the OFDM signals recorded in a sea trial. The comparison shows that the receiver with the proposed MBA Doppler estimation method outperforms the receiver with the SBA method and its detection performance is close to that of the receiver with the CAF method, but with a significantly lower complexity

Image registration for sonar applications

This work develops techniques to estimate the motion of an underwater platform by processing data from an on-board sonar, such as a Forward Looking Sonar (FLS). Based on image registration, a universal algorithm has been developed and validated with in field datasets. The proposed algorithm gives a high quality registration to a fine (sub-pixel) precision using an adaptive filter and is suitable for both optical and acoustic images. The efficiency and quality of the result can be improved if an initial estimate of the motion is made. Therefore, a coarse (pixel-wide) registration algorithm is proposed, this is based on the assumption of local sparsity in the pixel motion between two images. Using a coarse and then fine registration, large displacements can be accommodated with a result that is to a sub-pixel precision. The registration process produces a displacement map (DM) between two images. From a sequence of DMs, an estimation of the sensor's motion is made. This is performed by a proposed fast searching and matching technique applied to a library of modelled DMs. Further, this technique exploits regularised splines to estimate the attitude and trajectory of the platform. To validate the results, a mosaic has been produced from three sets of in field data. Using a more detailed model of the acoustic propagation has the potential to improve the results further. As a step towards this a baseband underwater channel model has been developed. A physics simulator is used to characterise the channel at waymark points in a changing environment. A baseband equivalent representation of the time varying channel is then interpolated from these points. Processing in the baseband reduces the sample rate and hence reduces the run time for the model. A comparison to a more established channel model has been made to validate the results

Performance Evaluation of a Full-Duplex UWA System in Lake Experiments

In this work we present a full-duplex (FD) underwater acoustic (UWA) communication system simultaneously transmitting and receiving acoustic signals in the same frequency bandwidth. To simplify the FD hardware, the system exploits a recently designed transducer capable of simultaneously transmitting and receiving signals. The key challenge of implementing an FD system is to cancel at the near-end receiver the strong self-interference (SI) from the near-end transmitter. By using advanced adaptive filtering algorithms providing high accuracy channel estimates, a high level of SI cancellation can be achieved when the far-end signal is absent. However, the SI channel estimation performance is limited in FD scenarios since the far-end signal acts as an interference when estimating the near-end SI channel. In this paper, we propose an FD UWA communication system which alternates between the SI cancellation and far-end data demodulation. An adaptive Rake combiner with multipath interference cancellation is implemented to improve the demodulation performance in time-varying multipath channels. The performance of the FD UWA system is evaluated in lake experiments. It is shown that the proposed adaptive Rake combiner with multipath interference cancellation significantly outperforms the conventional Rake combiner in all the experiments. The experimental results demonstrate that, with the new Rake combiner, the detection performance of the proposed FD UWA system is comparable with that of the half-duplex system.Comment: 9 pages, 15 figure

Predictive Effects of Good Self-Control and Poor Regulation on Alcohol-Related Outcomes: Do Protective Behavioral Strategies Mediate?

In the present study, we examined whether use of protective behavioral strategies mediated the relationship between self-control constructs and alcohol-related outcomes. According to the two-mode model of self-control, good self-control (planfulness; measured with Future Time Perspective, Problem Solving, and Self-Reinforcement) and poor regulation (impulsivity; measured with Present Time Perspective, Poor Delay of Gratification, Distractibility) are theorized to be relatively independent constructs rather than opposite ends of a single continuum. The analytic sample consisted of 278 college student drinkers (68% women) who responded to a battery of surveys at a single time point. Using a structural equation model based on the two-mode model of self-control, we found that good self-control predicted increased use of three types of protective behavioral strategies (Manner of Drinking, Limiting/Stopping Drinking, and Serious Harm Reduction). Poor regulation was unrelated to use of protective behavioral strategies, but had direct effects on alcohol use and alcohol problems. Further, protective behavioral strategies mediated the relationship between good self-control and alcohol use. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed

The Assessment of Protective Behavioral Strategies: Comparing the Absolute Frequency and Contingent Frequency Response Scales

The purpose of the present studies was to examine the effects of response scale on the observed relationships between protective behavioral strategies (PBS) measures and alcohol-related outcomes. We reasoned that an absolute frequency scale (stem: how many times... ; response scale: 0 times to 11 + times) conflates the frequency of using PBS with the frequency of consuming alcohol; thus, we hypothesized that the use of an absolute frequency response scale would result in positive relationships between types of PBS and alcohol-related outcomes. Alternatively, a contingent frequency scale (stem: When drinking ... how often ... ; response scale: never to always) does not conflate frequency of alcohol use with use of PBS; therefore, we hypothesized that use of a contingent frequency scale would result in negative relationships between use of PBS and alcohol-related outcomes. Two published measures of PBS were used across studies: the Protective Behavioral Strategies Survey (PBSS) and the Strategy Questionnaire (SQ). Across three studies, we demonstrate that when measured using a contingent frequency response scale, PBS measures relate negatively to alcohol-related outcomes in a theoretically consistent manner; however, when PBS measures were measured on an absolute frequency response scale, they were nonsignificantly or positively related to alcohol-related outcomes. We discuss the implications of these findings for the assessment of PBS

P-46 A Periodic Matrix Model of Seabird Behavior and Population Dynamics

Rising sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the Pacific Northwest lead to food resource reductions for surface-feeding seabirds, and have been correlated with several marked behavioral changes. Namely, higher SSTs are associated with increased egg cannibalism and egg-laying synchrony in the colony. We study the long-term effects of climate change on population dynamics and survival by considering a simplified, cross-season model that incorporates both of these behaviors in addition to density-dependent and environmental effects. We show that cannibalism can lead to backward bifurcations and strong Allee effects, allowing the population to survive at lower resource levels than would be possible otherwise

Interference Cancellation for UWA Random Access Data Packet Transmission

In underwater acoustic (UWA) random access communication networks with multiple users and data packet transmissions, the packet collisions are the main cause of the network performance degradation. The aim of this paper is to investigate interference cancellation (IC) techniques capable of resolving such collisions in a low-complexity modem with single-carrier modulation and single transducer. More specifically, in this modem, the IC is used at multiple stages of the receiver. Firstly, the IC is performed for cancelling the multipath interference to improve the equalization performance in comparison with the linear equalization and Rake combining. Secondly, the IC removes the interference from collided data packets within extracted signal segments after identifying the collisions. Finally, the IC is applied to the received baseband signal to improve the data packet detection. The modem performance is investigated in a lake experiment with intensive multipath channels. The experimental results demonstrate high detection performance of the proposed modem design and show that the proposed IC techniques can significantly improve the throughput of random access UWA networks.Comment: 13 pages, 13 figure