PRR Project

Summary

1. TASKS TO BE ASSIGNED TO THE PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEEThe science and technology activities (STA) in which the prospective employee will be involved include research and development (R&D) and science and technology services (STS) in the field of structure and its surroundings monitoring supported by digital images. The main tasks to be accomplished are:a) Innovate structure visual inspection activities based on digital terrestrial and aerial photographs.b) Develop digital image processing methods for the automatic identification and characterization of pathologies on dams, bridges, buildings and cultural heritage sites.c) Promote a comprehensive structural safety evaluation by monitoring structure surroundings through satellite images from Copernicus programme.d) Monitor the evolution of elements (e.g. vegetation) and of ground movement in the neighbourhood of critical infrastructures.e) Develop innovative methods to automatically identify hazardous situations and to issue early warnings.f) Prepare research proposals and participate in national and international research projects.g) Disseminate the achieved results by publishing papers and participating in scientific events.h) Train young researchers in MSc and PhD programs.2. SCIENTIFIC PROFILE REQUIREDGiven the tasks to be accomplished, the scientific profile required to the prospective employee should include:a) PhD with a strong component in Geographical Engineering.b) Background in digital image processing and remote sensing.c) Experience in the application of the above-mentioned technologies in the domain of civil engineering.d) Experience in computer programing and advanced software development.e) Background in multispectral and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images for land use / land cover classification, Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) processing and displacement interpretation.f) Knowledge of typical pathologies affecting concrete structures and cultural heritage sites (e.g. Portuguese glazed tiles “azulejos”).g) Ability to analyse problems critically.3. RATIONALE TO HIRE FOR THE SCIENTIFIC AREAInspection of critical infrastructures for condition assessment is one of the most relevant science and technology services provided by LNEC. Research and development activities are performed to improve procedures and to contribute to make these studies more accurate and cost-effective.The hiring of an expert in digital image processing and remote sensing will improve several activities performed by LNEC in the scope of its structure monitoring services. The inclusion of images and automatic algorithms for pathology mapping in visual inspection tasks will reduce their subjectivity and time demand, allowing a more efficient analysis of the structure condition. The use of satellite images and remote sensing methods to monitor structure surroundings will bring added value to the structure safety assessment, as it will enable a cost-effective monitoring of large areas. Furthermore, using images from bands other than visible will provide information beyond what the human eye can see. The analysis of the data provided by the images will aid in the identification of potential threats to the structure safety promoting the issue of early-warnings.The existence of researchers with the adequate profile to accomplish the identified tasks is relevant for LNEC. It is, therefore, necessary to timely reinforce LNEC team and hire an Assistant Researcher in this field.4. RELEVANCE OF THE SCIENTIFIC PROFILE OF THE PROPOSED POSITION IN THE CONTEXT OF THE STATE-OF-THE-ARTAt LNEC, structure visual inspections are already supported by photographs, with pathology identification being performed through photointerpretation. However, the usage of georeferenced data and a fully automatic procedure for pathology mapping would decrease subjectivity and facilitate a multitemporal analysis. Existing pattern recognition algorithms show limitations in the detection of typical structure pathologies (e.g. cracks). Furthermore, cultural heritage sites covered by “azulejos” pose a challenge for the application of digital image processing methods, due to their multiplicity of patterns and colours. Therefore, the development of specific algorithms to map pathologies on these surfaces will be of the utmost value to LNEC. Monitoring systems usually focus on the structure, while little is known about its surroundings, where monitoring tasks are often performed only after an accident. The usage of Earth observation data from Copernicus programme will enable LNEC to perform cost-effective monitoring and to identify early signs of anomalies.Therefore, the inclusion of an expert in digital image processing and remote sensing on LNEC’s team will benefit many of the Laboratory’s current activities and it will also promote new areas of action.