In the present study, a generalized active contour model of gradient vector flow is combined with the video techniques of Argus system to delineate and track sequential nearshore wave crest profiles in the shoaling process, up to their breaking on the shoreline. Previous applications of active contour models to water wave problems are limited to controllable wave tank experiments. By contrast, our application in this study is in a nearshore field environment where oblique images obtained under natural and varying condition of ambient light are employed. Existing Argus techniques produce plane image data or time series data from a selected small subset of discrete pixels. By contrast, the active contour model produces line image data along continuous visible curves such as wave crest profiles. The combination of these two existing techniques, the active contour model and Argus methodologies, facilitates the estimates of the direction wave field and phase speeds within the whole area covered by camera. These estimates are useful for the purpose of inverse calculation of the water depth. Applications of the present techniques to Hsi-tzu bay where a beach restoration program is currently undertaken are illustrated. This extension of Argus video techniques provides new application of optical remote sensing to study the hydrodynamics and morphology of a nearshore environment.
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