Model with Systematic Error Difference Constraint for Absolute Positioning of Seafloor Geodetic Stations

Measurement trajectory error, geometric error of the measurement trajectory, and systematic error attributable to the velocity of sound are the main sources of the errors that affect the positioning accuracy of seafloor geodetic stations. Here, we propose a systematic error difference constraint model designed to control the influence of systematic errors in seafloor geodetic station positioning. An error equation is constructed using system error parameters and the position parameters of the seafloor geodetic station to be estimated. On the basis of the subtle positional change characteristics of an adjacent epoch, the constraint condition of the adjacent epoch difference is added. Finally, for the case of a single seafloor transponder, analysis of the results of a simulation and an actual experiment confirm that the proposed model with a systematic error difference constraint can effectively control the influence of systematic errors on seafloor positioning and overcome the ill-posed model issue, thereby enabling positioning results that are more accurate.