Improvement of Position Estimation Based on the Multisensor Fusion in Underwater Unmanned Vehicles

In this paper, we propose the position estimation algorithm based on the multisensor fusion using equalization of state variables and feedback structure. First, the state variables measured from INS of main sensor with large error and DVL of assistance sensor with small error are measured before prediction phase. Next, the equalized state variables are entered to each filter and fused the enhanced state variables for prediction and update phases. Finally, the fused state variables are returned to the main sensor for improving the position estimation of UUV. For evaluation, we create the moving course of UUV by simulation and confirm the performance of position estimation by applying the proposed algorithm. The evaluation results show that the proposed algorithm is the best for position estimation and also possible for robust position estimation at the change period of moving courses.