Review of Optical-based Detection Technology for Underwater Small Targets
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摘要: 水下小目标(如微型水下航行器、水下探测器装置)的精准探测与识别是海洋资源开发、水下安防预警及水下工程检测等领域的重要内容。受水体衰减、光学散射、声波多径效应及复杂背景噪声等因素的综合制约, 传统探测技术在作用距离、空间分辨率与实时响应性等方面存在显著局限。随着海洋开发向精细化、智能化方向迈进, 以及水下无人装备对抗的战略价值持续凸显, 水下小目标光学探测技术已成为当前海洋信息技术领域的研究热点。文中系统梳理水下小目标光学探测技术的研究背景与战略意义, 重点从基于图像和基于激光雷达(LiDAR)两大技术路径展开全面综述: 在基于图像的技术体系中, 聚焦图像增强与目标检测两大核心环节, 深入剖析各类技术的原理机制、改进策略及性能表现; 在基于LiDAR的技术体系中, 针对面扫描成像、点扫描成像及线扫描成像等探测模式, 系统阐述其技术特性与典型应用场景。文中进一步剖析现有技术面临的瓶颈问题, 并结合海洋技术发展趋势展望未来研究方向, 为水下小目标光学探测技术的工程化落地提供理论支撑。Abstract: Accurate detection and recognition of underwater small targets (e.g., micro underwater vehicles, underwater detection device etc.) constitute a critical component in the fields of marine resource exploitation, underwater security early warning, and underwater engineering inspection. Constrained by the combined effects of water body attenuation, optical scattering, acoustic multipath effect, and complex background noise, traditional detection technologies exhibit notable limitations in terms of effective detection range, spatial resolution, and real-time responsiveness. With the advancement of marine development toward refinement and intelligence, coupled with the increasingly prominent strategic value of underwater unmanned equipment countermeasures, optical detection technology for underwater small targets has emerged as a research hotspot in the domain of marine information technology. This paper systematically sorts out the research background and strategic significance of optical detection technology for underwater small targets, and presents a comprehensive review focusing on two major technical approaches: image-based and LiDAR-based methods. For the image-based technical system, the study centers on two core modules—image enhancement and target detection—and conducts an in-depth analysis of the principle mechanism, improvement strategies, and performance characteristics of various technologies. For the LiDAR-based technical system, aiming at detection modes including area-scan imaging, point-scan imaging, and line-scan imaging, the paper systematically elaborates on their technical features and typical application scenarios. Furthermore, this paper analyzes the bottleneck problems faced by existing technologies, and prospects future research directions in combination with the development trend of marine technology, so as to provide theoretical support and practical reference for the engineering implementation of optical detection technology for underwater small targets.
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Key words:
- underwater small targets /
- optical detection /
- image enhancement /
- LiDAR
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图 7 水下线扫描LiDAR样机及海试结果
Figure 7. Prototype of an underwater line-scanning LiDAR and sea trial results
表 1 不同方法在测试集的定量评估
Table 1. Quantitative Evaluation on the UIEB Dataset
评价指标 RED UDCP ODM UIBLA UWCNN MSE 2107.3 5131 3208.6 3012.6 3887.7 PSNR 14.935 11.029 16.085 15.079 18.79 SSIM 0.5965 0.5019 0.5040 0.6957 0.7558 
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表 3 典型点扫描LiDAR系统
Table 3. Typical point-scanning LiDAR system
科研单位 分辨率 视场角 帧频 英国赫瑞瓦特 1 mm 1.6° 0.05 fps@256×256 日本三菱电机株式会社 20 mm 120°×30° 0.2 fps@ 1080 ×214加拿大Kraken Robotics 2 mm 65°×50° 0.1 fps 美国3D at depth 0.5 mm 30° 0.019 fps@ 1450 ×1450 广西测绘激光雷达智能
装备中试基地(GQ-23)约20 cm — 3 min/万m2
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