Direction of Arrival Estimation Using Underwater Acoustic Vector Sensor Array Towards Coastal Surveillance Applications

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to present the performance of Direction of Arrival(DoA) estimation algorithms for underwater sound source localization using an acoustic Vector Sensor Array (VSA) that is developed by the National Institute of Ocean Technology, Chennai. Algorithms such as conventional beam forming, Multiple Signal Classification (MUSIC) with Eigen value decomposition, and MUSIC with Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) are used for estimation of DoA and performance study. An experiment has been conducted with the VSA at the Acoustic Test Facility of NIOT with the source transmission of 1 kHz to 5 kHz for different azimuth angles. The estimation of DoA using the above three algorithms and the comparison of the results on resolution and accuracy have been studied in detail in terms of the number of vector elements. Results reveal that the MUSIC method gives results with higher accuracy and resolution than the conventional method. The maximum deviation from the true angle in the conventional method is 4°; in MUSIC, it is 2°, whereas in MUSIC with SVD, it is 1°. While the standard MUSIC algorithm involves computing the eigenvectors of the covariance matrix, which can be computationally expensive, MUSIC with SVD provides a more efficient way to achieve better results. SVD enables straightforward computation of the signal subspace, making it more practical for real-time applications like coastal surveillance. Further to the laboratory experiment, the vector sensor system has been deployed in an open sea environment near the harbor and a known source experiment is carried out. The DoA estimated using MUSIC with SVD for the field data reveals that the results are in good comparison with the measured azimuth and elevation positions. The deviations in the field results are due to dynamic conditions of the ocean ,and more sea trials need to be carried out for further study.