On exploiting propagation delays for passive target localization using bearings-only measurements

For many cases, target localization accuracy can significantly improve by accounting for the propagation delay between the target source and the sensors. This paper considers when it is advantageous to compensate for the propagation delay for the case of a network of nodes where each node consists of an array of sensors. Each node calculates a direction of arrival (DOA) from the raw data, and these DOAs are combined to localize the target. First, we consider the case when no prior data are given and the localization occurs using DOA measurements from a single snapshot. Such localization methods are necessary to initiate a target track. Finally, we investigate the case where an extended Kalman filter is used to aggregate measurements over multiple snapshots.