Explainable LiDAR 3D Point Cloud Segmentation and Clustering for Detecting Airplane-Generated Wind Turbulence

Research output: Contribution to book/Conference proceedings/Anthology/ReportConference contributionContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Wake vortices-strong, coherent air turbulences created by aircrafts-pose a significant risk to aviation safety and therefore require accurate and reliable detection methods. In this paper, we present an advanced, explainable machine learning method that utilizes Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data for effective wake vortex detection. Our method leverages a dynamic graph CNN (DGCNN) with semantic segmentation to partition a 3D LiDAR point cloud into meaningful segments. Further refinement is achieved through clustering techniques. A novel feature of our research is the use of a perturbation-based explanation technique, which clarifies the model's decision-making processes for air traffic regulators and controllers, increasing transparency and building trust. Our experimental results, based on measured and simulated LiDAR scans compared against four baseline methods, underscore the effectiveness and reliability of our approach. This combination of semantic segmentation and clustering for real-time wake vortex tracking significantly advances aviation safety measures, ensuring that these are both effective and comprehensible.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationKDD 2025 - Proceedings of the 31st ACM SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
Pages2504-2513
Number of pages10
ISBN (electronic)979-8-4007-1245-6
Publication statusPublished - 20 Jul 2025
Peer-reviewedYes

Conference

Title31st ACM SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining
Abbreviated titleKDD 2025
Conference number31
Duration3 - 7 August 2025
Website
LocationToronto Convention Centre
CityToronto
CountryCanada

External IDs

ORCID /0000-0001-5458-8645/work/196695991

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Keywords

  • 3d point cloud segmentation, explainability, lidar scan, wake vortex detection