Bayesian detection and tracking of odontocetes in 3D from their echolocation clicks

Abstract

To study behaviors of marine mammals in a nonintrusive manner, their bio-acoustical signals can be recorded by volumetric hydrophone arrays that provide time difference of arrival (TDOA) measurements for localization and tracking. Multi-target tracking (MTT) in 3-D using TDOA measurements from multiple sensors, however, must cope with non-linear measurement models and high-dimensional states. False alarms, missed detections and unknown data associations impose further challenges, often requiring human operators to annotate the data manually. We propose a data processing chain that automatically detects and tracks odontocetes from their echolocation clicks. The echolocation clicks are detected with a generalized cross-correlation that whitens the instrument noise. Two stages of tracking are performed using a tracking framework based on factor graphs and the sum-product algorithm (SPA). The odontocetes are first tracked in the TDOA domain to remove false alarms and then in the 3-D domain, fusing the tracked TDOAs across all sensors. To efficiently handle the considered non-linear and high-dimensional MTT scenario, particle flow is embedded in the SPA. According to simulation results, the proposed tracking method outperforms the existing approach using manual data annotation. Tracking of Cuvier’s beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris), whose echolocation clicks are recorded by two volumetric hydrophone arrays, is demonstrated.