Three-dimensional-positioning based on echolocation using a simple iterative method

This paper describes a method for determining the position of an object in three dimensions using time-of-flight (TOF) echolocation. The position is computed using a one-bit cross correlation and requires less computation time than a general cross correlation. A delta-sigma modulation board is introduced to convert the echo signal into one-bit signals. This solution uses an iterative method, i.e., Newton-Raphson, to obtain a position estimate. Additionally, an initial value for the solution is obtained by averaging TOFs, and no guess is required. Three hand-held communication devices are adapted as acoustical receivers. The validity of the proposed method is verified by the repeatability of the experimental results.