With input from Mike Williamson as to features that would be useful during a survey, Scott continued to rapidly refine his program. To test it in acquisition mode we borrowed a small E&G sidescan sonar, loaded our gear on my sailboat, and towed the fish down the west side of Lake Washington. The bottom was pretty boring until we passed right over an airplane that had crashed while approaching the landing strip at Sand Point Naval Air Station near the end of WWII.
That image ended up on a marketing postcard we produced:
Here is the text from the back of that card:
CREATED USING THE RTDDA IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM
A PRODUCT OF INFO EXPRESS INC.
This WWII bomber, located at the bottom of Lake Washington in Seattle, was surveyed using an EG&G 260 sidescan sonar at a frequency of 100 khz. The data was digitized and recorded on WORM (write once, read many) optical disc cartridges using the RTDDA acquisition system. One of the output devices of this image processing system is a high-resolution (1024 x 768 pixels x 16 colors) monitor, from which these images were photographed.
The segmented color bar at the bottom of the image shows how the intensity levels of the sonar signal are distributed. The colors at the right end represent low backscatter from the seabed; the left end shows the colors with maximum signal level. Various techniques can be used to enhance the image, including variable color palettes, threshold distribution selection, zoom, overlays, multi-track display, filtering, and edge detection.
We design and build our own hardware and can adapt the RTDDA system to your survey equipment. Interfaces have been developed for various sidescan and sub-bottom profile sonar devices, including some manufactured by IST, EG&G, and EDO. Our qualified technicians are available for installation and operation, and to instruct your personnel on all aspects of the system. Research and development continue to enhance the capabilities and special features of the hardware and software, our goal being to offer a complete system that will maximize the return on your survey dollars by improving the efficiency of field operations and increasing the value of your survey data.
Info Express Inc. strives to provide the best and latest in image processing and laser optic technology. It is our business to make the storage, access, and presentation of information, in whatever form, manageable, efficient, accurate, and economical.
Info Express Inc.
14320 NE 21st Street, Suite 18
Bellevue, WA 98007
(206) 641-3434