Advancement of Underwater Surveying and Scanning Techniques: A Review

Underwater scanning and surveying (USS) play a significant role in tactical surveillance, offshore explorations, climate change monitoring, and oceanography research. USS are required to accurately obtain the 3-D geometry information of an underwater object and determine the underwater area of interest respectively. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art USS by discussing the operations, characters, advantages and disadvantages of the sensors used in each of the techniques. The paper classifies the sensors based on the carrier signals which are acoustics and optical signals. The hybrid technique is then proposed by integrating acoustics and optical approaches for the scanning technology and utilizing artificial intelligence and OWC technologies to improve the system’s accuracy and latency. The structured review of these techniques will give insight into the future advancement of USS and improve its quality of service.