Data-based matched-mode source localization for a moving source

A data-based matched-mode source localization method is proposed in this paper for a moving source, using mode wavenumbers and depth functions estimated directly from the data, without requiring any environmental acoustic information and assuming any propagation model. The method is in theory free of the environmental mismatch problem because the mode replicas are estimated from the same data used to localize the source. Besides the estimation error due to the approximations made in deriving the data-based algorithms, the method has some inherent drawbacks: (1) It uses a smaller number of modes than theoretically possible because some modes are not resolved in the measurements, and (2) the depth search is limited to the depth covered by the receivers. Using simulated data, it is found that the performance degradation due to the afore-mentioned approximation/limitation is marginal compared with the original matched-mode source localization method. The proposed method has a potential to estimate the source range and depth for real data and be free of the environmental mismatch problem, noting that certain aspects of the (estimation) algorithms have previously been tested against data. The key issues are discussed in this paper. (C) 2014 Acoustical Society of America.