scholarly journals A Flexible Autonomous Robotic Observatory Infrastructure for Bentho-Pelagic Monitoring

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 1614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacopo Aguzzi ◽  
Jan Albiez ◽  
Sascha Flögel ◽  
Olav Rune Godø ◽  
Endre Grimsbø ◽  
...  

This paper presents the technological developments and the policy contexts for the project “Autonomous Robotic Sea-Floor Infrastructure for Bentho-Pelagic Monitoring” (ARIM). The development is based on the national experience with robotic component technologies that are combined and merged into a new product for autonomous and integrated ecological deep-sea monitoring. Traditional monitoring is often vessel-based and thus resource demanding. It is economically unviable to fulfill the current policy for ecosystem monitoring with traditional approaches. Thus, this project developed platforms for bentho-pelagic monitoring using an arrangement of crawler and stationary platforms at the Lofoten-Vesterålen (LoVe) observatory network (Norway). Visual and acoustic imaging along with standard oceanographic sensors have been combined to support advanced and continuous spatial-temporal monitoring near cold water coral mounds. Just as important is the automatic processing techniques under development that have been implemented to allow species (or categories of species) quantification (i.e., tracking and classification). At the same time, real-time outboard processed three-dimensional (3D) laser scanning has been implemented to increase mission autonomy capability, delivering quantifiable information on habitat features (i.e., for seascape approaches). The first version of platform autonomy has already been tested under controlled conditions with a tethered crawler exploring the vicinity of a cabled stationary instrumented garage. Our vision is that elimination of the tether in combination with inductive battery recharge trough fuel cell technology will facilitate self-sustained long-term autonomous operations over large areas, serving not only the needs of science, but also sub-sea industries like subsea oil and gas, and mining.

Author(s):  
Maxim Altyntsev ◽  
Marina Altyntseva

The territories of oil and gas deposits are represented with complicated and diverse industrial objects. During their operation and building of new constructions it is necessary to conduct topographic survey. Various methods are used for this purpose. The selection of these methods is determined by the degree of area build-up, its size and scale of the topographic plan being created. Aerial methods of topographic surveys are relevant when mapping large territories. Terrestrial methods are used more often when surveying oil and gas objects. Among terrestrial methods classically are accepted tacheometrical survey and GNNS measurements. Terrestrial and mobile laser scanning currently gained great popularity. Introduction of laser scanning methods allowed users to significantly speed up field works keeping high accuracy of obtained data. The advantages of laser scanning application comparing to classical methods when surveying oil and gas deposits are described. It is discussed what cases of classical method application can be more preferable. To cover all the bases the description is provided on the basis of 3 deposit parts, which are different in the degree of area build-up and have different requirements for topographic plan creation as follows: scale, need to input semantic information, a format of representing the result. Introduction of new survey methods requires developing appropriate data processing techniques. As a rule, each new survey territory has its own features which should be taken into account when developing new techniques. The techniques for creating topographic plans using terrestrial laser scanning, mobile one and GNNS measurements are described.


1993 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 414-422
Author(s):  
Adebayo Aina

Two key technological developments in petroleum exploration - three dimensional seismic survey (3-D Seismic) and integrated seismic interpretation workstations - have led to significant discoveries of oil and gas in the various Nigerian oil provinces where they have been introduced. These new technologies were introduced in Nigeria in the mid-1980s and have since resulted in significant additions to the country's proven crude oil and natural gas reserves.


2016 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. 1-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Sutton ◽  
Imran Rahman ◽  
Russell Garwood

AbstractVirtual paleontology is the study of fossils through three-dimensional digital visualizations; it represents a powerful and well-established set of tools for the analysis and dissemination of fossil data. Techniques are divisible into tomographic (i.e., slice-based) and surface-based types. Tomography has a long predigital history, but the recent explosion of virtual paleontology has resulted primarily from developments in X-ray computed tomography (CT), and of surface-based technologies (e.g., laser scanning). Destructive tomographic methods include forms of physical-optical tomography (e.g., serial grinding); these are powerful but problematic techniques. Focused Ion Beam (FIB) tomography is a modern alternative for microfossils; it is also destructive but is capable of extremely high resolutions. Nondestructive tomographic methods include the many forms of CT, which are the most widely used data-capture techniques at present, but are not universally applicable. Where CT is inappropriate, other nondestructive technologies (e.g., neutron tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, optical tomography) can prove suitable. Surface-based methods provide portable and convenient data capture for surface topography and texture, and might be appropriate when internal morphology is not of interest; technologies include laser scanning, photogrammetry, and mechanical digitization. Reconstruction methods that produce visualizations from raw data are many and various; selection of an appropriate workflow will depend on many factors, but is an important consideration that should be addressed prior to any study. The vast majority of three-dimensional fossils can now be studied using some form of virtual paleontology, and barriers to broader adaptation are being eroded. Technical issues regarding data sharing remain problematic. Technological developments continue; those promising tomographic recovery of compositional data are of particular relevance to paleontology.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Ting Zhao ◽  
Hongyan Zhao

Objective. We applied computed tomography (CT) to explore the imaging manifestations of rare parts of osteochondroma. Based on the medical images, deblurring using a convolutional neural network (CNN), and three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of the images is performed in order to improve the image diagnosis. Methods. Twelve cases of osteochondroma in rare locations confirmed by surgical pathology or clinical long-term dynamic observation were retrospectively analyzed using medical imaging and image reconstruction. There are 7 males and 5 females, with an average age of 43 years. CT examinations were performed in all cases. Image deblurring via the GAN model is performed followed by the 3D reconstruction of the higher quality images is implemented. A retrospective study was performed on the imaging manifestations of the above cases; the imaging characteristics were summarized. Results. The imaging features are the following lesions, including 4 cases of the proximal radius, 4 cases of the scapula, 2 cases of the pelvis, and 2 cases of the proximal ribs. The cartilage caps, cortex, and sternum were typical structures of the bone surface of the studied cases. In the continuous imaging features, calcification was visible in some cases, and no significant enhancement was seen in enhanced scans; there was no obvious direction of lesion growth. The image processing techniques that we performed are useful in enhancing the quality of the medical diagnosis. Conclusions. Rare site osteochondroma has certain imaging features. In most cases, we can accurately diagnose rare site osteochondroma through these features via the image processing methods that are proposed in this paper.


2020 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 435
Author(s):  
James H. Florisson ◽  
Andrew J. Rowland ◽  
Euan S. Harvey ◽  
Mathew B. Allen ◽  
Stephanie L. Watts ◽  
...  

The Exmouth Integrated Artificial Reef (King Reef) was deployed in July 2018 and is the first installation in Australia to innovatively combine repurposed oil and gas infrastructure with purpose-built concrete reef modules. The project involved a collaborative approach between industry, government (state and commonwealth), researchers and the community, creating a world-leading engineering solution using science-based habitat enhancement. The project integrated six mid-depth buoys with 49 artificial reef modules, providing more than 27000 m3 of habitat. Once support structures for subsea facilities, the decommissioned assets are now important habitat features that increase ecosystem productivity. The unique design and configuration of the structures on the sea floor resulted in a rapid increase in the diversity and abundance of marine biota, as detected by a collaboration between citizen scientists and researchers. Within 2 years, over 90 species of fish have already been observed, which is much greater than the sand habitat upon which the reef was installed. The results contribute to informed discussions, about the viability and effectiveness of artificial structures providing industry, regulators and the community with confidence around the benefits and effects of various installations. The Exmouth community has been advocating for the installation of an artificial reef for several years. At King Reef, the integration and repurposing of assets provide a range of long-term benefits to communities, including fostering community ownership and stewardship of these assets while providing new, safe and accessible fishing and diving opportunities.


Geosciences ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffen Beck-Broichsitter ◽  
Horst Gerke ◽  
Rainer Horn

The effects of compaction on soil shrinkage behavior need to be considered for engineering long-term durable mineral liners of landfill capping systems. For this purpose, a new three-dimensional laser scanning device was coupled with a mathematical-empirical model to simultaneously determine the shrinkage behavior of a boulder marl (bm) and a marsh clay (mc). Therefore, both materials were precompacted in 200 soil cores (100 cm3) on the basis of the Proctor test results with five different degrees of compaction (bm1-bm5; mc1-mc5). Thus, the shrinkage behavior, intensity, and tendency were determined during a standardized drying experiment. The volume shrinkage index was used to describe the pore size dependent shrinkage tendency and was classified as high to very high (11.3–17.7%) for the marsh clay and medium (5.3–9.2%) for the boulder marl. Additionally, only the boulder marl (bm2), compacted up to 88% of Proctor density, could be installed as landfill bottom liner in drier locations if the local matric potentials did not exceed the previously highest observed drying range (i.e. values below −300 hPa), to avoid crack formation and generation.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 4025 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffen Beck-Broichsitter ◽  
Horst Gerke ◽  
Rainer Horn

The soil shrinkage behavior of mineral substrates needs to be considered for engineering long-term durable mineral liners of landfill capping systems. For this purpose, a novel three-dimensional laser scanning device was coupled with (a) a mathematical-empirical model and (b) in-situ tensiometer measurements as a combined approach to simultaneously determine the shrinkage behavior of a boulder marl, installed as top and bottom liner material at the Rastorf landfill (Northern Germany). The shrinkage behavior, intensity, and geometry were determined during a drying experiment with undisturbed soil cores (100 cm3) from two soil pits; the actual in-situ shrinkage was also determined in 0.2, 0.5, 0.8, and 1.0 m depth by pressure transducer tensiometer measurements during a four-year period. The volume shrinkage index was used to describe the pore size dependent shrinkage tendency and it was classified as low (4.9%) for the bottom liner. The in-situ matric potentials in the bottom liner ranged between −100 and −150 hPa, even during drier periods, thus, the previously highest observed drying range (pre-shrinkage stress) with values below −500 hPa and −1000 hPa was not exceeded. Therefore, the hydraulic stability of the bottom liner was given.


2015 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.W. Smith ◽  
J.L. Carrivick ◽  
D.J. Quincey

Accurate, precise and rapid acquisition of topographic data is fundamental to many sub-disciplines of physical geography. Technological developments over the past few decades have made fully distributed data sets of centimetric resolution and accuracy commonplace, yet the emergence of Structure from Motion (SfM) with Multi-View Stereo (MVS) in recent years has revolutionised three-dimensional topographic surveys in physical geography by democratising data collection and processing. SfM-MVS originates from the fields of computer vision and photogrammetry, requires minimal expensive equipment or specialist expertise and, under certain conditions, can produce point clouds of comparable quality to existing survey methods (e.g. Terrestrial Laser Scanning). Consequently, applications of SfM-MVS in physical geography have multiplied rapidly. There are many practical options available to physical geographers when planning a SfM-MVS survey (e.g. platforms, cameras, software), yet, many SfM-MVS end-users are uncertain as to the errors associated with each choice and, perhaps most fundamentally, the processes actually taking place as part of the SfM-MVS workflow. This paper details the typical workflow applied by SfM-MVS software packages, reviews practical details of implementing SfM-MVS, combines existing validation studies to assess practically achievable data quality and reviews the range of applications of SfM-MVS in physical geography. The flexibility of the SfM-MVS approach complicates attempts to validate SfM-MVS robustly as each individual validation study will use a different approach (e.g. platform, camera, georeferencing method, etc.). We highlight the need for greater transparency in SfM-MVS processing and enhanced ability to adjust parameters that determine survey quality. Looking forwards, future prospects of SfM-MVS in physical geography are identified through discussion of more recent developments in the fields of image analysis and computer vision.


1982 ◽  
Vol 104 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
F. Z. Sun

The forces acting on a three-dimensional cylinder with arbitrary symmetrical cross section are derived taking into account viscous effect and applying linear-processing techniques. Then general expressions for the hydrodynamic forces, motion equation and its solution for a semisubmersible platform in regular waves are obtained. Based on linear theory of statistical analysis, it is proposed to employ the concept of “equivalent wave height” for the calculation of transfer functions with which both the short-term and long-term distribution and statistical characteristics of the motion of a semisubmersible may be estimated. A computer program has been developed. Comparison between model experimental and theoretical data has shown satisfactory agreement.


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