SBIR Phase I: Operational Monitoring of Large-Area Critical Infrastructure

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是降低关键基础设施部门（如能源，交通和公用事业）资产的地质灾害风险。更具体地说，拟议的技术将使用卫星雷达测量和探测地面运动在观测区域覆盖很长距离和穿越不同地形和土地类型的应用中更加实用。该创新旨在证明，多个成像频率和偏振的组合处理可以改善收集的信息，并且全球导航卫星系统（GNSS）数据的融合可以用于帮助洞察。天基卫星雷达干涉测量法在测量埋地管道、地基和铁轨道碴等空间敏感结构的位移方面的功效将在非常大的区域和直线距离上得到证明。该项目开发的技术可能会对上述部门产生积极影响，因为它可以使监测能力比传统方法更及时、更具成本效益。地理空间技术还可以使资产运营商在遇到地质灾害威胁时更加积极主动，降低致命和环境破坏性故障的频率。这一小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目旨在解决天基卫星雷达干涉测量的主要缺点，作为监测关键基础设施资产表面运动威胁的一种手段。虽然针对特定类型地形的干涉测量方法已经得到了充分的证明和验证，但在地形和雷达散射机制不同的非常大的区域内产生相干地面运动结果的方法尚未成功部署。此外，将多个干涉观测结合在一起以分解地面运动，尽管是将相对视线卫星观测转化为与资产监测相关的地面运动分量的重要步骤，但却很少受到研究关注。这项研究工作旨在证明使用多个成像频率和偏振的有效性，并结合其干涉测量结果，以创建一个更连续的地面运动与不同程度的植被地区的看法。该项目还可能表明，结合小基线子集和持续散射干涉测量方法可以提高在土地类型变化产生不同范围的散射机制的地区的分辨散射体的密度。该团队还试图展示GNSS数据在基准设置过程中的使用和准确性，因为洞察力被转化为关于大地基准的绝对运动分量。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to lower the geohazard risks for assets within critical infrastructure sectors such as energy, transportation, and utilities. More specifically, the proposed technology will make measuring and detecting ground motion with satellite radar more practical in applications where the observed areas cover very long distances and traverse varying terrain and land types. The innovation seeks to demonstrate that the combined processing of multiple imaging frequencies and polarizations can improve the information collected and that the fusion of global navigation satellite system (GNSS) data can be used to aid insight. The efficacy of space-based satellite radar interferometry in measuring shifts in spatially-sensitive structures such as buried pipelines, foundations, and rail track ballast will be demonstrated over very large areas and linear distances. The technology developed in this project may have a positive impact on the aforementioned sectors by enabling monitoring capabilities that are timelier and more cost-effective than traditional approaches. The geospatial technology may also enable asset operators to be more proactive when it comes to geohazard threats, lowering the frequency of fatal and environmentally-damaging failures.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project seeks to address the key shortcomings of space-based satellite radar interferometry as a means to monitor surface motion threats to critical infrastructure assets. While interferometric approaches for specific types of terrain have been well documented and validated, approaches that produce coherent ground motion results over very large areas with varying terrain and radar scattering mechanisms have not been successfully deployed. Furthermore, combining multiple interferometric observations together to decompose ground motion has received little research attention despite being an important step in translating the relative line-of-sight satellite observations into ground motion components relevant to asset monitoring. This research effort seeks to demonstrate the efficacy of using multiple imaging frequencies and polarizations and combining their interferometric results to create a more continuous view of ground motion over areas with varying degrees of vegetation. This project may also demonstrate that combining both small baseline subset and persistent scatter interferometric approaches can improve the density of resolved scatterers over areas where land type variations create a diverse range of scattering mechanisms. The team also seeks to demonstrate the use and accuracy of GNSS data in the reference setting process as insights are translated into absolute motion components about the geodetic reference.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.