Factor graph method for target state estimation in bearing-only sensor network

doi:10.23919/JSEE.2024.000122

Journal of Systems Engineering and Electronics ›› 2025, Vol. 36 ›› Issue (2): 380-396.doi: 10.23919/JSEE.2024.000122

• DEFENCE ELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY • Previous Articles

Factor graph method for target state estimation in bearing-only sensor network

Zhan CHEN(), Yangwang FANG(), Ruitao ZHANG(), Wenxing FU()

National Key Laboratory of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Technology, Unmanned System Research Institute, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an 710072, China

Received:2024-05-10 Online:2025-04-18 Published:2025-05-20
Contact: Yangwang FANG E-mail:chenzhan@mail.nwpu.edu.cn;ywfang@nwpu.edu.cn;ruitaozhang@mail.nwpu.edu.cn;wenxingfu@nwpu.edu.cn
About author:
CHEN Zhan was born in 1996. He received his B.S. degree in mechatronic engineering from Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin, China, in 2018. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. degree in intelligent unmanned systems science and technology with the Unmanned System Research Institute, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, China. His research interests include interceptor navigation, guidance and control, target tracking, multi-sensor fusion, and collaboration of multi-agent system. E-mail: chenzhan@mail.nwpu.edu.cn

FANG Yangwang was born in 1966. He received his Ph.D. degree in control science and engineering from Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China, in 1998. He is a professor and a doctoral supervisor with the Unmanned System Research Institute, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, China. He is currently the executive director of Shaanxi Automation Society and Shaanxi Signal Processing Society. His research interests include interceptor navigation, guidance and control, multi-sensor fusion, performance evaluation, and collaboration of multi-agent system. E-mail: ywfang@nwpu.edu.cn

ZHANG Ruitao was born in 1996. He received his B.S. degree in weapons system science and technology from North University of China, Taiyuan, China, in 2019. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. degree in intelligent unmanned systems science and technology with the Unmanned System Research Institute, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, China. His research interests include interceptor navigation, guidance and control. E-mail: ruitaozhang@mail.nwpu.edu.cn

FU Wenxing was born in 1974. He received his Ph.D. degree in aircraft design from Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, China, in 2004. He is a professor and a doctoral supervisor with the Unmanned System Research Institute, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, China. His research interests include interceptor navigation, guidance and control, multi-sensor fusion, and aircraft design. E-mail: wenxingfu@nwpu.edu.cn
Supported by:
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (62176214).

Abstract

Abstract:

For target tracking and localization in bearing-only sensor network, it is an essential and significant challenge to solve the problem of plug-and-play expansion while stably enhancing the accuracy of state estimation. This paper proposes a distributed state estimation method based on two-layer factor graph. Firstly, the measurement model of the bearing-only sensor network is constructed, and by investigating the observability and the Cramer-Rao lower bound of the system model, the preconditions are analyzed. Subsequently, the location factor graph and cubature information filtering algorithm of sensor node pairs are proposed for localized estimation. Building upon this foundation, the mechanism for propagating confidence messages within the fusion factor graph is designed, and is extended to the entire sensor network to achieve global state estimation. Finally, groups of simulation experiments are conducted to compare and analyze the results, which verifies the rationality, effectiveness, and superiority of the proposed method.

Key words: factor graph, cubature information filtering, bearing-only sensor network, state estimation

Zhan CHEN, Yangwang FANG, Ruitao ZHANG, Wenxing FU. Factor graph method for target state estimation in bearing-only sensor network[J]. Journal of Systems Engineering and Electronics, 2025, 36(2): 380-396.

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Axis	F₁	F₂	F₃	F₄	F₅
x/m	20000	15000	20000	40000	40000
y/m	15000	20000	20000	30000	30000
z/m	5000	5000	5000	10000	5000

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Factor graph method for target state estimation in bearing-only sensor network

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