SE 6023
Multibeam Sonar, theory and operation
Instructor : John E. Hughes Clarke
Winter or Fall Terms at the instructors discretion
weekly timing as suits everyone (normally in E19)
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At this point, a "burning desire to map the ocean" is seen merely
as an essential prerequisite.
To broaden a student's familiarity and understanding of the technical
aspects of acoustic swath sonar surveying. This might take the form of
:
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studying in detail one aspect of multibeam sonar, or
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examining one particular sonar configuration or
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investigation the technical aspects of a specific application of swath
sonar or even
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developing a software tool that helps analyse problems in swath sonar data
quality.
TIMETABLE 2000/1/2
There is no formal , preset timetable.
COURSE SEQUENCE
Class meetings are arranged at the convenience of the students and instructors.
Normally ~ 2 contact hours per week would be normal. A series of problem
are posed through the term (hopefully by the students themselves) and the
students are asked to :
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study the problem or issue in question in detail
-
design methods
-
develop sofware algorthims to implement
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make presentations on the approach to the others
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submit a final term paper on the issue.
Examples of Previous Problems :
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the effect of extreme salinity variations in the Arabian Gulf on
swath sonar refraction.
-
procedures for the calibration of swath sonar systems.
-
the potential use of within-beam
procedures for the calibration of swath sonar systems.
-
the potential use of within-beam backscatter intensity in data cleaning
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the application of multibeam sonar data to fisheries habitat assessment
-
comparison and analysis of bottom detection capability of RESON 9001 and
8101 sonars (using locally collected data).
-
the potential applications of multibeam sonar in mine hunting.
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extraction of original sonar parameters from raw data telegrams and the
recomputation of the solution using all logged observables.
The course is normally open only to graduate students. However, other registered
students who can show a particular reason and have a strong quantitative
and analytical background may be allowed to take the course.
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS
When first introduced in 1995, this class was designed to allow graduate
students within the GGE dept. to follow the evolving contents of a commerical
swath sonar training course developed by the instructor and 3 others (the
OMG Multibeam Training Course).
Over the period 1995 to 1999 however, most of the basic contents of this
course were moved into the core undergraduate hydrography course (SE4053,
now changed to SE3353).
As a result of the embedding of the core MBC contents into SE3353, that
course is now considered as a prereq is now considered as a prerequisite for SE6023. The prospective
student is thus expected to have a strong prior knowledge of :
-
basic acoustic principles
-
hydrographic survey operations
-
basic swath sonar principles
Depending on the specific interests of the students involved, the classes
will be tailored to explore the problems of interest and to fill in those
knowledge gaps that are required to address the problem. All students will
have full access to the computing resources of the Ocean Mapping Group
and will be expected to do their analysis and presentations digitally.
FIELD OPERATIONS
Whilst there is no formal field program for this class, the graduate
students are strongly encouraged to take part in swath sonar field programs
that are part of the ongoing research of the Ocean Mapping Group. Most
frequently, this involves sea time on the Canadian Hydrographic Survey
vessels whilst experimental operations are ongoing. However, for some years
this has involved participating in field mapping operations in locations
ranging from Hawaii to the New York Bight.
Whilst these field programs often don't coincide with the formal class,
the term paper is often written some time later and may make use of data
collected as part of these opportunistic field experiments.
For exc field experiments.
For example in 2000, the students:
-
performed a patch test on the CCGS Frederick G. Creed (Simrad EM1000) at
BIO, prior to her commencing operations for the USGS
-
performed a reference surface experiment on the CSL Plover (Simrad
EM3000) in St. John harbour, comparing the POS/MV with the Seapath 200
in 1999, some of the students:
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performed target detection experiments with a RESON Seabat 9001 on concrete
block off SABS (St. Croix Estuary)
-
performed the same target detection experiments with a RESON Seabat 8101
in 1998, some of the students:
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participated in the CHS EM3000S search for the SwissAir -111 crash
site.
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participated in EM3000D surveys for the USGS off Long Beach California
In 1997, some of the students
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participated in EM300 surveys for the USGS off the Hawaiian Islands
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participated in EM300 surveys for the USGS off San Diego
In 1996 some of the students
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participated in EM1000 surveys for the USGS off the New Jersey Slope.
COURSE ASSESSMENT
The course assessment will be based :
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interaction during contact hours
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term-time presentations and software development
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Term papers
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Term papers
last modified 12th November 2000 by John
E. Hughes Clarke.