AUV state estimation and navigation to compensate for ocean currents

Abstract

This paper presents a novel approach to water-current compensation for autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) state estimation and navigation. The approach is twofold: first, an extended Kalman filter estimates both the AUV state and water-currents in the north and east directions; second, these water-current estimates are used in a modified heading controller to calculate a current-compensated desired heading for the AUV to follow. Both the extended Kalman filter and modified heading controller are presented and simulated using historical experimental data for noise estimation. The presented results are a promising first step towards further testing and real-time implementation on the AUVs for localization and navigation in ocean environments.