北极水声学研究的新进展和新动向

北极水声学作为水声学研究的一部分,起步要比达·芬奇所描述的声呐雏形晚很多年。第二次世界大战后北极水声学的研究开始受到发达国家(主要是美国)的重视。它的发展和研究重点带有明显的冷战烙印。冷战结束之后,随着北极持续变暖的趋势,北极及其毗邻海域的海洋水声环境受到特别的重视。环北极的8个国家组成排他性的北极理事会。我国政府于2018年1月26日发表北极政策白皮书,声明中国是近北极国家,是北极地区利益攸关方。本文介绍北极水声学研究的新进展,包括我国有关涉海单位近年来所做的科考和学术研究。指出,北极水声学的研究不局限于把传统水声学中的研究内容(如环境噪声、混响、传播等等)并行地在北极环境条件下加以重复探讨,而是要根据北极海洋环境的实际情况,进行有关领域的新研究。其中不乏传统浅海、深海水声学研究中所不具有的特色,如冰-水界面、冰下的半声道效应、冰盖下水下无人载器(UUV)的通信、定位及声呐对冰下环境的适应性研究等课题。     

水声学研究进展

声学是一门古老而又年轻的科学,水声学是声学的一个分支。本文介绍近年来水声学研究的主要进展。包括新型水声换能器材料、水中非线性声学、匹配场过滤、宽容性信号处理、水声通信、合成孔径成象技术、数据融合、声层析、水下GPS技术等。文中还介绍了军事海洋学和基于模型的声呐设计等新概念。     

Wave analysis of ray chaos in underwater acoustics

The dispersion of a wave packet in an acoustic medium is considered in the paraxial wave approximation, where the effective potential, due to variation of the speed of propagation, varies both with depth and propagation distance. The analysis of the resulting parabolic equation, similar to the Schrodinger equation, clearly demonstrates the role of ray chaos in enhancing the dispersion of the initial packet. However, wave coherence effects are also seen that suppress the effects of the ray chaos in a manner analogous to the effects of quantum chaos. (c) 1999 American Institute of Physics.     

浅海环境中的时间反转多用户水声通信

在无线电通信中,多用户通信可以采用时分多址(TDMA)、频分多址(FDMA)或者码分多址(CDMA)技术来实现,在水声通信中,信道的多途传播特性带来的空间差异,提供了另外的多用户通信手段。时间反转(或相位共轭)技术,能够实现对空间中指定点的聚焦接收和多途压缩,它为空间位置不同的多个用户提供了相互独立的通信通道,能够很好地克服用户之间的同道干扰(CI)。本文在垂直阵接收的基础上,利用时间反转技术来实现不同用户在同一信道中的同时通信,结合带锁相环的自适应判决反馈均衡技术来消除残余的多途码间干扰,并进行了初步的海上试验,实现了两个不同深度上用户的同时通信。     

Recent advances in utilizing acoustics to study surface roughness in agricultural surfaces

The evaluation of surface roughness in agricultural settings is investigated. Previous work has shown that sound propagating in a direction parallel to a smooth porous ground attenuates more rapidly than in a free space. This attenuation is due to absorption of the sound in the air filled pores in the ground. Previous work has also shown that a comparable attenuation phenomenon exists for propagation over a rough surface, albeit from different attenuation mechanisms. It is proposed that these additional attenuation mechanisms can be used to quantify the surface roughness, even on a porous surface. Attempts to model observed data with an effective impedance or reflection coefficient, in order to quantify the surface roughness, have had some success but have met with some problems for certain propagation geometries and surface configurations. Experimental data and modeling results will be presented and discussed for a variety of surfaces ranging in surface properties from impermeable to loosely packed soil and ranging in surface roughness scales from low sloped perturbations to steeply sloped wedges.     

Virtual modes and the surface boundary condition in underwater acoustics

An explicit expression for the contribution of continuous normal modes to the acoustic pressure field in shallow water is derived under the assumption of constant sound speed in the bottom. An approximate evaluation of the resulting integral leads to a summation over “virtual” modes. These virtual modes are similar to the trapped modes except that their amplitudes decay with range. Their contribution is important in certain situations, for example at short ranges and where there may be few or no trapped modes. The validity of the “pressure release” boundary condition at the surface is investigated. This approximate boundary condition is justified by allowing for energy leakage into the air and examining the virtual mode contribution to the normal mode expression. These virtual modes converge identically to the usual trapped mode expression in the limit of zero air density.     

复射线法及其在水声技术中的应用

本文介绍复源点射线技术原理,概述各种复射线分析方法,并举例说明这种方法在水声技术中一些可能的应用,包括指向性声场的复射线分析,声辐射器阵列方向性的复射线模拟,近区和远区声场的复射线变换,以及声呐目标强度的复射线理论预估等。     

An ultrasonic signal processor for use in underwater acoustics

An ultrasonic signal processor is described which analyses information from conventional echo sounders fitted to small craft. Although an inexpensive accessory, it includes a number of novel features of value both to hydrographers and fishermen.The features include a high level of quantitative bottom discrimination, a wide dynamic range of fish abundance measurement with fine resolution (including modes for bottom trawling and net ‘flying’), the ability to detect fish close to the sea bottom, and the provision of audible warning systems. One of the features of the device is that while exploiting original scientific approaches, it permits these to be used in such a way as to augment, confirm and extend the professional experience of the individual fisherman.     

Complex ray method and its applications to underwater acoustics

In this paper,the principle of complex source point and various analyt-ical methods of complex ray are summarized.Some possible applications ofcomplex ray method to underwater acoustics are proposed,including complexray analysis of directional acoustic fields,complex ray simulation of directivityof acoustic radiator arrays,complex ray transformation of acoustic fields fromnear zone to far zone,as wel1 as theoretical prediction of sonar target strengthby complex ray method.     

Gibbs sampling for time-delay-and amplitude estimation in underwater acoustics

Multipath arrivals at a receiving sensor are frequently encountered in many signal-processing areas, including sonar, radar, and communication problems. In underwater acoustics, numerous approaches to source localization, geoacoustic inversion, and tomography rely on accurate multipath arrival extraction. A novel method for estimation of time delays and amplitudes of arrivals with maximum a posteriori (MAP) estimation is presented here. MAP estimation is optimal if appropriate statistical models are selected for the data; implementation, requiring maximization of a multidimensional function, is computationally demanding. Gibbs sampling is proposed as an efficient means for estimating necessary posterior probability distributions, bypassing analytical calculations. The Gibbs sampler includes as unknowns time delays, amplitudes, noise variance, and number of arrivals. Through Monte Carlo simulations, the method is shown to have a performance very close to that of analytical MAP estimation. The method is also shown to be superior to expectation-maximization, which is often applied to time-delay estimation. The Gibbs sampling approach is demonstrated to be more informative than other time-delay estimation methods, providing complete posterior distributions compared to just point estimates; the distributions capture the uncertainty in the problem, presenting likely values of the unknowns that are different from simple point estimates.     

Features of underwater acoustics from Aristotle to our time

Underwater acoustics has been one of the fastest growing fields of research in acoustics. In particular, the 20th Century has taken our understanding of underwater acoustics phenomena a great step forward. The two World Wars contributed to the recognition of the importance of research in underwater acoustics, and the momentum in research and development gained during World War II did not reduce in the years after the war. The so-called cold war and the development in computer technology both contributed substantially to the development in underwater acoustics over the second half of the 20th Century. However, the very widespread field of underwater acoustic activities started nearly 2300 years ago with human curiosity about the fundamental nature of sound in the sea. From primitive philosophical and experimental studies of the velocity of sound in the sea and through centuries of successes and failures, the knowledge about underwater acoustics has developed into its high-technological status of today. In particular the development through the period from Aristotle (384–322 BC) to 1960 formed the basis for the tremendous research and development efforts we have witnessed in our time. In this paper most emphasis will be put on the development in underwater acoustics through this period of nearly 2300 years duration, and only the main trends in later research will be mentioned.     

New approach to the normal mode method in underwater acoustics

A new approach to the numerical solution of normal model problems in underwater acoustics is presented,in which the corresponding normal mode problem is transformed to the problem of solving a dynamic system.Three applications are considered:(1)the broad band normal mode problem;(2) the range-dependent problem with perturbation proportional to the range parameter;and (3) the evolution of the normal mode with environmental parameters.A numerical simulation for a broad band problem is performed,and the calculated eigenvalues have good agreement with those obtained by the standard normal mode code KRAKAN.     

海底反射对水声射线混沌行为的影响

本文探讨非线性声速分布、内波扰动、和海底反射对哈密顿抛物射线方程动力学行为的影响。运用Poincaré映象、Lyapunov指数等非线性动力学方法对射线系统行为进行描述。结果显示水声射线在不发生海底反射的情况下,内波对声速扰动的增强将导致正的Lyapunov指数,使射线产生不规则的混沌运动并扩大射线系统的混沌区域。然而海底反射显著影响了声速分布、内波扰动和射线运动的非线性相互作用。海底深度的减小使声射线系统的混沌区域扩大,然而过小的深度减弱了声速分布和射线的非线性相互作用,使混沌区域缩小。因此,我们可以得出海底反射对于水声射线的混沌动力学行为有重要影响的结论。     

Examination of time-reversal acoustics in shallow water and applications to noncoherent underwater communications

The shallow water acoustic communication channel is characterized by strong signal degradation caused by multipath propagation and high spatial and temporal variability of the channel conditions. At the receiver, multipath propagation causes intersymbol interference and is considered the most important of the channel distortions. This paper examines the application of time-reversal acoustic (TRA) arrays, i.e., phase-conjugated arrays (PCAs), that generate a spatio-temporal focus of acoustic energy at the receiver location, eliminating distortions introduced by channel propagation. This technique is self-adaptive and automatically compensates for environmental effects and array imperfections without the need to explicitly characterize the environment. An attempt is made to characterize the influences of a PCA design on its focusing properties with particular attention given to applications in noncoherent underwater acoustic communication systems. Due to the PCA spatial diversity focusing properties, PC arrays may have an important role in an acoustic local area network. Each array is able to simultaneously transmit different messages that will focus only at the destination receiver node.