Seagrasses are core components of the nearshore environment and there is sustained interest in developing mapping and monitoring techniques of their extent and condition for management purposes. An identified gap in mapping methods is the capacity to monitor at landscape scales, that is, areas that are larger than the 1 m2 quadrat and smaller than those covered by broad area mapping (approximately 5km2 or greater). Monitoring at the landscape scale is required to investigate the dynamic patterning and patchiness present in seagrass beds, as well as providing inputs and validation for predictive modelling. However, the acquisition and use of remote sensing images for these purposes provides many challenges to the practitioner. The primary aim of this thesis is to develop effective optical remote sensing techniques for mapping and monitoring seagrass habitats in shallow temperate marine waters, over depth ranges of approximately 0-10 m and spatial scales of hundreds of square metres. Image capture is often compromised because of environmental conditions, such as sun glitter, water clarity, cloudiness and wind. Small format digital aerial photography was selected as the remote sensing platform for its flexibility and responsiveness regarding deployment when environmental conditions are favourable and its low cost, rapid access to imagery. To address the problem of sun glitter, a simplified algorithm was developed that allows the precise prediction of the extent of sun glitter on vertical, downward-looking imagery with the readily available inputs of sun elevation angle, wind speed and sensor field of view (FOV). Subsurface illumination was also investigated via the modelling of reflection and refraction at the water surface. These improvements and investigations enable more efficient and accurate image capture. Problems are also typically encountered during image interpretation, in part due to the characteristics of the seagrass habitats, including the common occurrence of uncertain boundaries and the high variability of vegetation density. Limitations on the detectability of the maximum depth limit (MDL) of seagrass were examined, with the discovery that if imagery is captured when water clarity is higher than the annual average, the limiting factor is the contrast between the seagrass and the surrounding substrate or submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV). A simple and inexpensive measurement of water clarity, Secchi depth (Zsd), was found to be suitable when applying this monitoring method. These findings have substantially increased the feasibility of monitoring seagrass condition and extent via the MDL, as well as the water quality parameter of average annual water clarity (Kz). A major challenge for image interpretation is presented by the high attenuation of light in water, which often means that spectral methods of image analysis, such as image classification, produce poor results. In response, an improved depth correction approach was developed that uses digital bathymetry (DEM) to assist in removing the spectral attenuation of light by the water column. The method lifted the accuracy of mapping seagrass epiphyte abundance (i.e. the amount of associated algae including epiphytic and drift algae present, related to biomass) by an average 25% to an overall average accuracy of 75%, though it made no difference to the accuracy of SAV density mapping (Note: SAV density relates to the proximity and length of the SAV blades such that high density SAV obscures the substrate and creates high levels of shadowing while lower densities have less shadowing and allow the substrate to be observed.). The improved depth correction method also enabled, for the first time from aerial photography, the production of a spatially explicit map of epiphytic biomass in the form of a continuous prediction surface with values ranging from 4 to 58 g dried weight m-2. In response to the shortcomings of the existing field observation measurements of seagrass density and cover for image interpretation purposes, a new measurement was created, called SAV structural density or SSD, which is designed to improve thematic coherence between aerial photography and field observations, such as downward-looking benthic videography or dive quadrats. This new measurement enabled the consistent discrimination of high and low density SAV with average overall accuracies of 77%, which supports the assessment of seagrass condition, particularly when complemented by the new maps of epiphyte abundance. This thesis presents methods that improve the quality of remote sensing of shallow marine habitats and provides a more reliable basis for further investigation of habitat change detection via spatial metrics and predictive modelling at landscape scales.

A comprehensive understanding of urban development is critical for moving towards the goal of sustainability. Despite a collection of urban sustainability indicator (USI) conceptual frameworks proposed and explored in practical urban sustainability assessment, establishing an integrated, well-quantified, spatially characterized USI model is still a challenging task. Therefore, based on a manuscript-style format this thesis develops a subjectively weighted integrated USI model and then applies it to the city of Saskatoon, SK, Canada, as a case study, based on quantifying a hierarchical index system. In addition, urban environmental sustainability is spatiotemporally investigated for an improved understanding of Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect. Results show that the proposed integrated USI model improved urban sustainability measurement by overcoming the shortages in existing USI models. Geospatial statistics demonstrated disparity in urban sustainability across residential neighbourhoods for Saskatoon in 2006 based on the significant clusters and outliers. It also found that population increases can possibly improve intellectual and economic well-being and promote urbanization, but may cause environmental degradation and lead to a decline in overall urban sustainability. This research also demonstrates that satellite imagery can be used to study environmental sustainability at different spatiotemporal scales. This research reveals that both urban water and green spaces had significant cooling effects on the surrounding urban LST within specific ranges. Urban surface temperature can be estimated based on a multiple linear regression model with sustainable traveling mode index and land use information as input variables. The overall significance of this research has three folds. First, it lays a preliminary theoretical foundation for a comprehensive understanding of urban sustainability based on a well-quantified integrated USI model. Second, it is relatively original with respect to improving urban sustainability measurements through the incorporation of subjective information into objective data. Third, this research has explored spatiotemporal analysis to detect urban sustainability patterns based on compiling multiple data sources using geospatial techniques. The proposed USI model is highly suitable for comparison analysis at different spatial scales as well as continuously tracking the dynamic changes. Therefore, this research can be a good practice of applying the spatiotemporal philosophy to urban geographical problems.

This thesis investigates public access to environmental information, starting with the examination of environmental information and environmental information systems (EIS). This examination demonstrates that term “environmental information” holds a wide range of meaning, and while it is possible to describe “core environmental information”, the full range of environmental information is open for wide interpretation. In regard to environmental information systems, the thesis demonstrates the importance of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) as a major component of most EIS, and the influence of the institutional settings within which they operate on these systems. To better understand the requirements and needs of likely users of environmental information (those with interest in environmental issues and with access to the technology), the thesis contains two empirical studies – a web-based survey of requirements and needs from a public environmental information system for London, and a public participation workshop in which representatives of local interest groups explored the use of GIS for local planning purposes. The analysis of these studies (using the framework of Soft Systems Methodology) leads to the development of conceptual models and criteria set for public access to environmental information. These models and criteria are then compared to existing web-based information systems, a comparison that reveals gaps between the desired system and the current state of the art. The thesis ends with some suggestions about how to improve information systems to improve public access. The thesis is based upon a wide array of topics, including aspects of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) in the context of Geographical and Environmental Information Systems (GIS/EIS). Information Systems Design methodologies, Public Participation GIS (PPFIS), Public Understanding of Science (PUS), social aspects of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Philosophy of Technology.

Ground deformation due to volcanic magma intrusion is recognised as an important precursor of eruptive activity at a volcano. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is ideally suited for this application by being able to measure three-dimensional coordinate changes of the monitoring points over time. Due to the highly disturbed ionosphere in equatorial regions, particularly during times of maximum solar activity, a deformation monitoring network consisting entirely of single-frequency GPS receivers cannot deliver baseline solutions at the desired accuracy level. In this thesis, a mixed-mode GPS network approach is proposed in order to optimise the existing continuous single-frequency deformation monitoring system on the Papandayan volcano in West Java, Indonesia. A sparse network of dual-frequency GPS receivers surrounding the deformation zone is used to generate empirical 'correction terms' in order to model the regional ionosphere. These corrections are then applied to the single-frequency data of the inner network to improve the accuracy of the results by modelling the residual atmospheric biases that would otherwise be neglected. This thesis reviews the characteristics of existing continuously operating GPS deformation monitoring networks. The UNSW-designed mixed-mode GPS-based volcano deformation monitoring system and the adopted data processing strategy are described, and details of the system's deployment in an inhospitable volcanic environment are given. A method to optimise the number of observations for deformation monitoring networks where the deforming body itself blocks out part of the sky, and thereby significantly reduces the number of GPS satellites being tracked, is presented. The ionosphere and its effects on GPS signals, with special consideration for the situation in equatorial regions, are characterised. The nature of the empirically-derived 'correction terms' is investigated by using several data sets collected over different baseline lengths, at various geographical locations, and under different ionospheric conditions. Data from a range of GPS networks of various sizes, located at different geomagnetic latitudes, including data collected on Gunung Papandayan, were processed to test the feasibility of the proposed mixed-mode deformation monitoring network approach. It was found that GPS baseline results can be improved by up to 50% in the mid-latitude region when the 'correction terms' are applied, although the performance of the system degrades in close proximity to the geomagnetic equator during a solar maximum.

Le Maroc connaît une augmentation rapide de la population urbaine due à la croissance démographique, à l'exode rural et à plusieurs autres paramètres sociaux, économiques, etc. Cette urbanisation, qui introduit des phénomènes assez complexes, a généré une multitude de problèmes : transports, manque d'équipements sociaux, dégradation de l'environnement, gestion de l'espace urbain, etc. Les agences urbaines ont été créées pour maîtriser ce phénomène à travers l'établissement de documents d'urbanisme définissant les règles d'utilisation du sol et le contrôle des activités urbaines.L'agence urbaine traite quotidiennement une quantité importante de données géographiques. A cet effet, l'enjeu de la mise en place d'un Système d'Information Géographique est de taille. La présente étude consiste à dresser un constat de la gestion urbaine dans la ville de Mohammedia et à approfondir, tant sur les volets théorique que pratique, la mise en œuvre d'un SIG pour la gestion urbaine afin de gérer les équipements publics, les voiries et générer automatiquement des notes de renseignements au sein de l'agence urbaine. Comment restructurer les bases de données spatiales déjà existantes afin de lancer une application SIG pour rénover la gestion urbaine ?Les systèmes d'information géographique (SIG) se positionnent aujourd'hui comme un puissant outil d'aide à la décision, particulièrement pour ce qui concerne la gestion de l'espace. L'intégration de la dimension spatiale, grâce aux SIG, permet désormais de localiser l'information et d'organiser les données de façon plus conviviale / Morocco knows a rapid development of Urban Population due to population growth, rural exodus and several parameters (social, economic…). This urbanization involving complex phenomena has generated multitude of problems (notably the transportation problem, the lack of social equipments, the environment damage, the difficulty of Urban Management…). The Urban Agencies have been created to bring under control this phenomenon by establishing Urbanism Documents which define the land use laws, and by controlling the urban activities.The urban agency handles daily a large amount of geographical data. To this end, the issue of the establishment of a Geographic Information System is size. This study is to draw up a report on urban management in the city of Mohammedia and deepen both the theoretical aspects and practical implementation of a GIS for urban management to manage public facilities, roads and automatically generate notes intelligence within the urban agency. How to restructure databases already existing spatial data to launch a GIS application to renovate urban management?Geographic information systems (GIS) today positioned as a powerful tool for decision support, particularly with regard to the management of the space. The integration of the spatial dimension, using GIS, now can locate information and organize data in a more user-friendly.

Perceiving the dynamics of moving objects in complex scenarios is crucial for smart monitoring and safe navigation, thus a key enabler for intelligent supervision and autonomous driving. A variety of research has been developed to detect and track moving objects from data collected by optical sensors and/or laser scanners while most of them concentrate on certain type of objects or face the problem of lacking motion cues. In this thesis, we present a data-driven, model-free detection-based tracking approach for tracking moving objects in urban scenes from time sequential point clouds obtained via state-of-art Doppler LiDAR, which can not only collect spatial information (e.g. point clouds) but also Doppler images by using Doppler-shifted frequencies. In our approach, we first use Doppler images to detect moving points and determine the number of moving objects, which are then completely segmented via a region growing technique. The detected objects are then input to the tracking session which is based on Multiple Hypothesis Tracking (MHT) with two innovative extensions. One extension is that a new point cloud descriptor, <i>Oriented Ensemble of Shape Function (OESF)</i>, is proposed to evaluate the structure similarity when doing object-to-track association in MHT. Another extension is that speed information from Doppler images is used to predict the dynamic state of the moving objects, which is integrated into MHT to improve the estimation of dynamic state of moving objects. The proposed approach has been tested on datasets collected by a terrestrial Doppler LiDAR and a mobile Doppler LiDAR <a>separately</a>. The quantitative evaluation of detection and tracking results shows the unique advantages of the Doppler LiDAR and the effectiveness of the proposed detection and tracking approach.<br>

With the increasing presence given to the municipal districts in the administration of public assistance services provided to the population, notably the municipalization of health care and primary education, structure tensions have been produced in this level of govern. The expansion and improvement of these services to users end up causing more and more needs of larger structures, which generate more expenses to the municipal districts. Thus, the municipal public revenue, although it receives new advances to face municipalization, turned out to be insufficient to assume the totality of these expansions. So, among the tax revenue of tributes that the municipal districts dispose, the Tax About Services of Any Nature (ISSQN) can represent enough increase to supply these expansions of the public expense. That tax has its first factor that generates its collection in the registration of an own cadaster of all existing establishments and its classification in a list for the tributary demand. One intends to show that geotechnologies utilization can be useful to the spacialization and easy location of these establishments, checking this information with those registered in the traditional databases of the prefecture fiscal control. The availability of these information in CDs® 2.5 (software developed in the Geomatic Laboratory of Federal University of Santa Maria for the administration of municipal tributes) can provide a transparent analysis of the records that have already been registered as well as to control areas where the simultaneous presences of certain activities may cause some sort of risk (drink and schools, nightclubs and hospitals, etc.). Therefore, the utilization of apparatus GARMIN® 12 XL, a cheap and easily handling equipment, can be useful to the georeference of establishments and any activities of the urban center, so that the maintenance and update of the records can be used in the everyday inspection and without burdening the fiscal procedures significantly. The maintenance and update are also used to analyze the profile of the real existing activities and, therefore, visualize the local entrepreneurs' vocation, which is shown by the installation tendency requested in the Prefecture. The control and improvement of tribute collection respects the fiscal responsibility that every political should try to balance in the same way the fomentation to enterprises and the attention for local empregability supplies the social responsibility that the State should try to improve. / Com a crescente presença dada aos municípios na gestão de serviços públicos de atendimento à população, notadamente as municipalizações da saúde e da educação fundamental, têm-se produzido tensões de estruturas nesse nível local de governo. A expansão e melhoria desses atendimentos aos usuários acabam por provocar exigências de estruturas cada vez maiores, que geram mais despesas aos municípios. Assim, a receita pública municipal, embora receba novos repasses para fazer frente às municipalizações, tem se revelado insuficiente para arcar com a totalidade dessas expansões. Assim, dentre os tributos de arrecadação própria que os municípios dispõem, o Imposto Sobre Serviços de Qualquer Natureza (o ISSQN) pode representar acréscimo suficientes para atender essas expansões da despesa pública. Esse imposto tem seu primeiro fato gerador de arrecadação na inscrição em cadastro próprio de todos os estabelecimentos existentes e sua devida classificação em lista própria para a exigência tributária. Pretende-se mostrar que o uso de geotecnologias pode ser útil para a devida espacialização e fácil localização destes estabelecimentos, cruzando essa informação com aqueles registrados nos bancos de dados tradicionais de controle fiscal da prefeitura. A disponibilização dessas informações no CDS® 2.5 (aplicativo desenvolvido no Laboratório de Geomática da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria para gestão de tributos municipais) pode servir para uma análise transparente dos registros ali já depositados e servir também para controle de áreas onde as presenças simultâneas de determinadas atividades podem causar algum tipo de risco (bebidas e escolas, boates e hospitais, etc.). Assim, o uso de aparelhos GARMIN® 12 XL, equipamento barato e de fácil manuseio, podem servir para o georreferenciamento de estabelecimentos e quaisquer atividades do centro urbano, de forma que a manutenção e atualização dos registros possam ser utilizadas no dia-a-dia da fiscalização e de forma a não onerar significativamente os procedimentos fiscais. Também serve essa manutenção e atualização para analisar o perfil das atividades efetivamente existentes e, assim, visualizar a vocação dos empreendedores locais, mostrada pela tendência de instalação solicitada na Prefeitura. O controle e a melhoria de arrecadação do tributo atende a responsabilidade fiscal que todo o agente político deve procurar equilibrar, assim como o fomento aos empreendimentos e a atenção a empregabilidade local atende a responsabilidade social que o Estado deve procurar melhorar.

<p>  </p> <p>For the agencies who are maintaining the transportation infrastructure, staying up to date with inspections is a continuing challenge. One approach to addressing that is to allow an inspector to perform most of the inspection process by viewing a digital 3D model, which is accurate and substantially complete. Having a digital 3D model could limit the on-site inspection process to those cases where the virtual inspection suggests more input is necessary. Such models would be defined by point clouds or by a surface composed of textured polygons. One of the advantages of building the 3D model via textured polygons instead of point clouds is that the inspector can zoom in and see the detail as needed. The data required to construct such a model are photographs that can be captured by a combination of handheld cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). Having such a model will help these agencies to improve the efficiency of their inspection process in several ways, such as lowering the overall inspection costs, fewer lane closures during the inspection procedures, and having digital archives for their infrastructure. Of course, the time and effort to collect the images and build the model are substantial, but once a model is constructed, subsequent images can be applied as texture without recreating the model.</p> <p>This research will cover the task of building an accurate 3D wireframe model for a bridge that can be used to display texture realistically via rigorous image projection onto the wireframe surface. The wireframe geometry will be substantially derived from extracted linear features. The model’s estimation process will integrate the photogrammetric bundle block adjustment technique with suitable methods to estimate the linear feature parameters. Prior to the developments above, an investigation has been done to determine the possibility of automating the process of selecting the conjugate points using <em>Structure-From-Motion</em> (SFM) algorithms, as implemented in programs such as <em>AGISOFT or PIX4D</em>. </p> <p>In this kind of application, the bridge mostly has two types of linear features: the Straight Linear Features (SLF), which can be found on the component elements of the bridge structure, and the Parabolic Linear Features (PLF) for linear elements spanning the entire bridge length. After estimating the parameters of the linear features, the quadrilateral polygons used in the wireframe/visualization process can be extracted using these parameters. Furthermore, these quadrilateral polygons form the foundation for image texture projection. Also noteworthy, the process of generating these quadrilateral polygons is substantially automated.</p> <p>Whenever doing least squares estimation, one needs a way to express the uncertainty of the computed parameters (unknowns). In the early stages of the project, one may not know the uncertainty of the observations. Often pairs of parameters (typically X, Y position) need their uncertainties to be displayed together, graphically, in the form of a confidence circle with a given probability. Under these conditions, the literature offers no guidance on how it should be constructed rigorously. This research develops such a technique. In geomatics, there are two cases when making confidence statements. The first one is when the observation uncertainties are known. If the case is 1D, the corresponding probability density function is the univariate normal distribution. When the case is 2D, the chi-squared distribution will be used for the elliptical region, and the multivariate normal distribution will be used when making confidence circles. The second condition is when the uncertainties of the observations are unknown. When these uncertainties are unknown, the univariate t-distribution will be used to make the 1D confidence statement. The F-distribution will be used for the elliptical region. For a confidence circle, the multivariate t-distribution must be used. This research will present an algorithm to implement this process and show, numerically, that it is valid. </p>

<p>Low-cost unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) utilizing push-broom hyperspectral scanners are poised to become a popular alternative to conventional remote sensing platforms such as manned aircraft and satellites. In order to employ this emerging technology in fields such as high-throughput phenotyping and precision agriculture, direct georeferencing of hyperspectral data using onboard integrated global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and inertial navigation systems (INS) is required. Directly deriving the scanner position and orientation requires the spatial and rotational relationship between the coordinate systems of the GNSS/INS unit and hyperspectral scanner to be evaluated. The spatial offset (lever arm) between the scanner and GNSS/INS unit can be measured manually. However, the angular relationship (boresight angles) between the scanner and GNSS/INS coordinate systems, which is more critical for accurate generation of georeferenced products, is difficult to establish. This research presents three alternative calibration approaches to estimate the boresight angles relating hyperspectral push-broom scanner and GNSS/INS coordinate systems. For reliable/practical estimation of the boresight angles, the thesis starts with establishing the optimal/minimal flight and control/tie point configuration through a bias impact analysis starting from the point positioning equation. Then, an approximate calibration procedure utilizing tie points in overlapping scenes is presented after making some assumptions about the flight trajectory and topography of covered terrain. Next, two rigorous approaches are introduced – one using Ground Control Points (GCPs) and one using tie points. The approximate/rigorous approaches are based on enforcing the collinearity and coplanarity of the light rays connecting the perspective centers of the imaging scanner, object point, and the respective image points. To evaluate the accuracy of the proposed approaches, estimated boresight angles are used for ortho-rectification of six hyperspectral UAV datasets acquired over an agricultural field. Qualitative and quantitative evaluations of the results have shown significant improvement in the derived orthophotos to a level equivalent to the Ground Sampling Distance (GSD) of the used scanner (namely, 3-5 cm when flying at 60 m).</p>

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:23:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2002-12Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T18:09:44Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 tsuchiya_i_me_prud.pdf: 799978 bytes, checksum: 9fdf1a044dc4426ea66abb64ee6b3e13 (MD5) / O presente trabalho tem como referência o Projeto de Salvamento Arqueológico de Porto Primavera, cujo objetivo foi resgatar, analisar e conservar os vestígios das antigas civilizações ribeirinhas do Rio Paraná. Uma das etapas de um projeto de salvamento é a prospecção, nela, o arqueólogo realiza a vistoria em toda a área de interesse à procura de indícios das habitações pretéritas, porém, essa etapa é demorada e onerosa. Com base na técnica de modelagem preditiva multivariada (regressão logística), aliada às ferramentas de geoprocessamento, pudemos avaliar as prováveis áreas de ocupação pretérita, reduzindo assim, a etapa de prospeção. Como resultado temos um mapa de classes, com as probabilidades de ocorrência de sítios arqueológicos utilizando o método de regressão logística. / This work has as reference the Project of Archaeological Rescue of Porto Primavera, whose objective was to rescue, to analyze and to conserve the vestiges of the old marginal civilizations of the Paraná River. One of the stages of project is the prospection, in, the archaeologist carries through the inspection in all the area of interest to the search of indications of the past habitations, however, this stage is delayed and onerous. On the basis of the technique of multivaried predictive modeling (logistic regression), allied to the tools of Geographic Information System, we could evaluate the probable areas of past occupation, thus reducing, the stage of prospection. As result we have a map of classrooms, with the probabilities of occurrence of archaeological small farms using the method of logistic regression.