CONCLUSIONS

I have described an automatic picking algorithm that combines linear and non-linear optimization procedures. The algorithm is applied to dip-picking, event-picking, well-log interpolation and velocity picking. The results are reasonably accurate and reliable. For specific applications, the linear optimization part can be further improved. For example, in velocity picking, one can use Toldi's iterative method (Toldi, 1985). The event-picking may have an application in the traveltime picking step of tomographic inversion. I intend to incorporate the local dip information into imaging operators so that DMO and migration become a one-to-one mapping. An important extension of the algorithm is to allow multiple dips. The success of this extension will make the algorithm much more valuable than it is now.