A High-Precision Positioning Method for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles with Communication Delays

In underwater navigation of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), communication delays frequently occur, leading to a reduction in positioning accuracy. To mitigate this challenge, this work introduces a novel method for relative angle correction, aiming to reconstruct measurement information. Initially, Doppler measurement data are assimilated into the reconstruction of measurement equations to determine the relative angle between the AUV and the observatory. Subsequently, the obtained angle information is integrated into the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) for the reconstruction of measurement equations. The proposed method effectively reduces positioning errors caused by hydroacoustic communication delays, consequently enhancing AUV positioning accuracy. The efficacy of the proposed method is demonstrated through a simulation study. Simulation results reveal that the incorporation of Doppler angle correction in the reconstructed measurement information method significantly decreases the localization error by approximately 50% compared to EKF and by around 20% compared to the method lacking angle correction.