Single-pass polarimetric SAR interferometry for vessel classification

This paper presents a novel method for vessel classification based on single-pass polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry. It has been developed according to recent ship scattering studies that show that the polarimetric response of many types of vessels can be described by trihed...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Margarit Martín, Gerard, Mallorquí Franquet, Jordi Joan|||0000-0002-9424-1889, Fabregas Canovas, Francisco Javier|||0000-0002-7654-9695
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2007
País:España
Institución:Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)
Repositorio:UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/1483
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2117/1483
https://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TGRS.2007.897437
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Synthetic aperture radar
Interferometry
Polarimetry
Vessel classification
Coherent target decomposition
Ship classification
Polarimeters
Radar d'obertura sintètica
Interferometria
Polaritat
Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Enginyeria de la telecomunicació::Radiocomunicació i exploració electromagnètica::Teledetecció
Descripción
Sumario:This paper presents a novel method for vessel classification based on single-pass polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry. It has been developed according to recent ship scattering studies that show that the polarimetric response of many types of vessels can be described by trihedral- and dihedral-like mechanisms. The adopted methodology is quite simple. The input interferometric data are decomposed in terms of the Pauli basis, and hence, one height image is derived for each simple mechanism. Then, the local maxima of these images are isolated, and a 3-D map of scatters is generated. The correlation of this map with the scattering distribution expected for a set of reference ships provides the final classification decision. The performance of the proposed method has been tested with the orbital SAR simulator developed at Universitat PolitÈcnica de Catalunya. Different vessel models have been processed with a sensor configuration similar to the incoming TanDEM-X system. The analysis of diverse vessel bearings, vessel speeds, and sea states shows that the map of scatters matches reasonably the geometry of ships allowing a correct identification even for adverse environmental conditions.