GPR Technology
What is GPR?
GPR is an acronym for Ground Penetrating Radar, and as the name implies, it’s a radar system that you use to image the subsurface. It may be used on a host of different penetrable materials to detect and map features or objects within.
The technology has been widely accepted and is routinely used for various applications such as mapping utilities, bedrock, cavities/sinkholes, archaeological artifacts, and groundwater levels.
More recently, it has found use in military/ counter-terrorist, law enforcement, and search-and-rescue applications.
Other common names for GPR include impulse radar, geo radar, and ultra-wideband radar.
Why use GPR?
As a safe and non-disruptive method, GPR is the ideal way to investigate the subsurface for a wide range of applications. Deploying GPR in the field is easy, and sites can be scanned rapidly, which also makes it an economical choice.
Originally pioneered as a non-destructive technique for geophysical investigations, Ground penetrating radar can be used to obtain information about what lies beneath the earth’s surface and to non-destructively detect and map both natural geological features and buried man-made infrastructure.
How GPR works?
GPR method
GPR works by transmitting a small pulse of ultra-wide band (UWB) electromagnetic energy into the material under investigation and then records the time it takes for some or all of that energy to be returned, along with a measure of its signal strength.
A GPR antenna, which contains both transmitting and receiving elements, is placed on, or very near to the surface of the ground (or material under investigation), and moved across it to scan the area.
By continuously transmitting pulses and recording the associated returns, a radargram image of the subsurface can be generated and viewed in real-time on a suitable screen (pc/ tablet).
Changes in the composition of the subsurface can be seen based on air, mineral and water content, presence of bedrock or other geological features, and objects such as buried utility lines.
Signal sampling methods
All GPR systems need to sample analogue signals from the antenna and digitize them for processing and display. The sampling method, as well as the rate at which samples are taken, can significantly affect the quality of results. Therefore, the sampling rate is an important specification that determines system performance.
Traditionally, GPR systems utilize a technique called ‘equivalent time-sampling,’ which requires a new pulse to be sent from the transmitting antenna for every sample recorded on the receiver end. Systems using this method are commonly known as conventional GPR.
However, modern components now make it possible to use a technique called real-time sampling or RTS, and this is the method used in ImpulseRadar designs. As the name implies, it means that the ‘real’ signal is captured directly, and in sharp contrast to conventional systems, it does not require repetition of the transmission-recording cycle. The result is a GPR system that gathers data thousands of times faster than a conventional one.
GPR data processing
Commonly known as post-processing, where the raw GPR data (as collected and saved on-site) can be managed and reviewed (off-site) using PC-based software. Processing GPR data can aid in the analysis and interpretation of results.
The practice of post-processing GPR data can often be more efficient than trying to mark-out and make decisions directly on site. Operator experience, the complexity of the site, and/ or project time constraints, may all contribute to such an approach. Typically, post-processed data is more detailed and provides more information on which to make critical decisions.
ImpulseRadar offers both 2D and 3D data processing software to support our product lines, and several third-party vendors offer GPR data processing software that supports our data formats.
