<title>Optical image sensing through turbid water</title>

Abstract

Optical image sensing through turbid seawater is one of the most challenging problems in underwater vision for underwater robotic vehicles (URVs). In this article, we intend to briefly review the basic of underwater optical imaging for a start. For more advanced systems, there are two major techniques: time discrimination (lidar imaging, or range-gated) and spatial discrimination (scanning method). Here, we present our underwater lidar imaging (UWLI) experimental system which give very clear revelation of "sliced-view" phenomenon in a 3m tank with very turbid water (1.0/m). And then, we suggest an underwater Lidar PanCam system, which is the combination of the two major techniques above and based on photo-mosaicing approach.