The Department of Electronics at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) has won a project to monitor underwater pipelines and cables using cutting-edge algorithms.
The project titled “Algorithms for Underwater Image Enhancement, Object Detection and Cable Tracking” has been awarded to the Advanced Signal Processing and Instrumentation Research Lab (ASPIRE) under the Department of Electronics. An official release said the project was being supported by Naval Research Board, which has provided ₹30.6-lakh assistance. The underwater pipeline and cables need constant maintenance and monitoring. Unmanned underwater vehicles need sophisticated image processing capabilities that must be efficient as well as robust, it said.
The project deals with the image enhancement of deep-sea underwater images, pipelines, cables and seafloor textures, through the use of cutting-edge algorithms.
The project will try to deal with many challenges in handling images procured from deep sea area, where the visibility conditions are poor and colour and contrast conditions are deprived.
The release said the emphasis of the project lies primarily in the area of image processing and analysis of processed images. The image contrast enhancement, which is a method used to increase the visibility of images, can be performed using feature-based or intensity based methods.
Underwater pipelines and cables need to be constantly monitored to identify the damage caused to them due to earthquakes and other environmental changes.
The constant monitoring of these pipelines and cables can be really helpful in avoiding devastating events like oil spills, gas leakages, etc.
Communication cables that are placed in the underwater area need to be constantly monitored for ensuring information flow. An intelligent vision-based navigation and guidance system will be developed, which involves efficient methods for vision-based target detection as well as tracking in an underwater environment. Supriya M.H, Professor and Head of the Department of Electronics, is the principal investigator of the project. Arun A. Balakrishnan is the co-investigator.