Utilization of new echo attributes for acoustic seabed classification and characterization

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The single-beam echosounder is a standard marine surveying tool that generates echo returns used to map seabed bathymetry. These echo returns also contain information about the seabed, both from energy scattered back from the seabed surface and from the sediment volume immediately below the seabed. In limited situations, sediment properties have been characterized by direct estimates from these echoes. However, a more practical approach utilized by acoustic seabed classification systems is to extract descriptive statistics known as features from seabed echoes. This approach is common to present day commercial systems. Seabed classification systems apply segmentation algorithms to sets of features to divide the seabed into segments of similar acoustic character. Through ground truth information, these segments are often successfully related to classes of seabed types.