Development of autonomous radar for remotely measuring snow and ice thickness over lakes and rivers / Radar automatique de mesures de l'épaisseur de neige et glace de lacs

该提案包括舍布鲁克大学遥感应用与研究中心(卡特尔)与私人伙伴加拿大坎贝尔科学公司(CSC)之间的合作，以开发一个测量积雪深度和湖泊/河流冰厚度的自动系统。该系统包括调频连续波(FMCW)雷达和用于雷达控制和数据记录/存档的电子盒。目前正在开发的这项反演是基于一种实时自动提取冰雪厚度的算法。2015年，我们用一个初步的手持样机展示了该系统在测量冰层厚度方面的潜力，测量精度为±2厘米。该系统还可以在固定的气象位置(自动气象站)以独立模式使用，或嵌入车辆(如雪地摩托或冰路上的卡车)，或用于无人机，以安全地绘制湖泊和河流冰。本项目的目标是首先对实际样机进行改进，并确认初步的精度结果。然后，我们想要演示和验证其他提出的模式的可行性。加拿大坎贝尔科学公司是天气和气候监测测量和控制产品的领先者，在这个具有强大商业潜力的创新项目中是我们的工业合作伙伴。拟议的传感器将用于环境和冰冻圈应用，如气象学、水文气象学和气候报告，以及冬季娱乐应用。这项合作研究和开发(CRD)补助金将允许将这项新技术转让给CSC。

The proposal consists of cooperation between the Center for applications and research in remote sensing (CARTEL) of the Université de Sherbrooke (Department of applied geomatics) and a private partner, Campbell Scientific Canada (CSC), for developing an automatic system measuring snow depth and lake/river ice thickness. The system includes a Frequency Modulated Continuous-Wave (FMCW) radar and an electronic box for radar control and data recording/archiving. The retrieval, currently under development, is based on a real-time automatic extraction algorithm of both ice and snow thickness. In 2015, we demonstrated the potential of this system for ice thickness measurements with an accuracy of ±2 cm with a preliminary handheld prototype. This system could also be used in a standalone mode at a fixed location for meteorology (automatic weather station), or embedded in a vehicle (ex, snowmobile or trucks on ice roads), or used on drones for mapping lake and river ice safely. The objectives of this project are first to improve the actual prototype and to confirm the preliminary accuracy results. We then want to demonstrate and validate the feasibility of the other proposed modes. Campbell Scientific Canada, leader in measurement and control products for weather and climate monitoring, is our industrial partner in this innovative project having a strong commercial potential. The proposed sensor will be used for environmental and cryospheric applications such as meteorology, hydro-meteorology and climate reporting as well as in winter recreational applications. This Collaborative Research and Development (CRD) Grant will allow the transfer of this new technology to CSC.