US 12,437,533 B2
System for determining streamflow duration from remotely-sensed imagery
Zhaocheng Wang, Mesa, AZ (US); and Enrique Vivoni, Tempe, AZ (US)
Assigned to ARIZONA BOARD OF REGENTS ON BEHALF OF ARIZONA ATATE UNIVERSITY, Scottsdale, AZ (US)
Filed by Zhaocheng Wang, Mesa, AZ (US); and Enrique Vivoni, Tempe, AZ (US)
Filed on Feb. 1, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/163,077.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/305,975, filed on Feb. 2, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2023/0245447 A1, Aug. 3, 2023
Int. Cl. G06V 20/20 (2022.01); G01C 13/00 (2006.01); G06V 10/75 (2022.01); G06V 10/762 (2022.01); G06V 20/10 (2022.01); G06V 20/13 (2022.01); H04N 7/18 (2006.01); H04N 23/11 (2023.01)
CPC G06V 20/194 (2022.01) [G01C 13/002 (2013.01); G06V 10/75 (2022.01); G06V 10/762 (2022.01); G06V 20/13 (2022.01); G06V 20/182 (2022.01); H04N 7/181 (2013.01); H04N 23/11 (2023.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A computer implemented method for determining varying phenomena in an environment, the method comprising:
receiving, from a sensor, a sequence of remote sensing (RS) data regarding the environment, wherein the environment comprises a target area where changes have occurred and a surrounding area where few or no changes have occurred leading to contrasting response between the target area and the surrounding area;
processing the RS data to determine signals for the changes that have occurred in the target area and where no changes have occurred in the surrounding area, wherein the signals comprise reflected sunlight radiation or returned light or radiation of different wavelengths captured by the sensor;
processing the signals to determine environment data indicating the varying phenomena in the environment, wherein the varying phenomena in the environment comprises changes in the physical characteristics of the target area and an amount of radiation captured by the RS data; and
providing the environment data for display via a user device,
wherein the target area comprises a river, wherein the surrounding area comprises a plurality of river reach segments, and wherein the varying phenomena comprises a streamflow presence for the river,
determining a rectangular buffer perpendicular to a river reach line of the river for each river reach segment;
determining a channel mask by calculating changes in the RS indexes between flood and dry conditions and applying a clustering algorithm;
determining, as a RS index difference, the difference of the RS index between inside and outside the channel mask for each of the plurality of river reach segments;
determining an optimal threshold of the RS index difference based on a comparison with streamflow observations from gauges; and
determining the streamflow presence for the river based on a surface reflectance for each of the plurality of river reach segments.