Seabed classification using a single beam echosounder

Analysis of seabed features with acoustic devices is an active field of research and permits to define parameters suitable to build a classification method useful to recognize different kinds of seabed. The aim of the paper is to give a preliminary description of a method to identify the presence of Posidonia on the seabed based on the analysis of raw data collected with a single beam echosounder. In particular, we propose preliminary results obtained during surveys in Biograd Na Moru (Croatia), in which raw acoustic data of the seafloor were collected by a double frequency echosounder. The key aspect of this work is the process of features extraction from the power spectra and the definition of indexes representing the characteristics of the returning echoes. Using these indexes, the presence of Posidonia on the seabed can be derived.