Implementing an Acoustic Propagation and Scattering Model for Simulating Synthetic Aperture Sonar Data

open_access
Open Access
Author:
Brownstead, John
Area of Honors:
Engineering Science
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Daniel C. Brown, Thesis Supervisor
Gary L. Gray, Thesis Honors Advisor
Andrea P. Arguelles, Thesis Supervisor
Keywords:
synthetic aperture sonar
scattering
model
Abstract:
The objective of this thesis is to develop an acoustic scattering and propagation model. This model includes fundamental physical effects, can be used to create synthetic sonar data, and allows users to identify the optimal strategy for introducing new physical effects into existing models. This model specifically produces synthetic aperture sonar data using a seafloor that consists only of a user-defined planar scene. The benefit of this model compared to the already existing and more sophisticated sonar models is its simplicity and ease of modification. This allows the user to implement new physical effects using various methods in a low risk environment to determine which method optimizes image quality and the required number of computations. Throughout this thesis, the theory behind many acoustic propagation and scattering models is be explained. This thesis should assist readers unfamiliar with acoustics in understanding acoustic propagation and scattering models and in comparing different models.