Method and Device for Estimating a Relative Position Between Towed Acoustic Linear Antennas

A non-transitory computer-readable carrier medium storing a program which, when executed by a computer or a processor, causes the computer or the processor to carry out a method for estimating a position of a first acoustic linear antenna relative to a second acoustic linear antenna belonging to a network of towed acoustic linear antennas on which are arranged a plurality of nodes, wherein the method comprises steps of:

• (a) setting a first plurality of nodes arranged on said first acoustic linear antennas so that they act as sender nodes and a second plurality of nodes arranged on said second acoustic linear antenna so that they act as receiver nodes;
• (b) forming at least a first group of sender nodes each sending a same first acoustic signature;
• (c) for each receiver node:
• obtaining a propagation duration elapsed between an emission instant of said first acoustic signature and a reception instant of said first acoustic signature received by said receiver node;
• and
• establishing a geometrical figure representative of potential positions of a sender node, as a function of the propagation duration obtained for said receiver node and said first acoustic signature;
• (d) determining a set of common points between the geometrical figures established for said receiver nodes;
• and
• (e) estimating the position of said first acoustic linear antenna relative to said second acoustic linear antenna as a function of said set of common points.

A device for estimating a position of a first acoustic linear antenna relative to a second acoustic linear antenna belonging to a network of towed acoustic linear antennas on which are arranged a plurality of nodes, wherein said device comprises:

• means for setting a first plurality of nodes arranged on said first acoustic linear antennas so that they act as sender nodes and a second plurality of nodes arranged on said second acoustic linear antenna so that they act as receiver nodes;
• means for forming at least a first group of sender nodes each sending a same first acoustic signature;
• means for obtaining, for each receiver node, a propagation duration elapsed between an emission instant of said first acoustic signature and a reception instant of said first acoustic signature received by said receiver node;
• means for establishing, for each receiver node, a geometrical, representative of potential positions of a sender node, as a function of the propagation duration obtained for said receiver node and said first acoustic signature;
• means for determining a set of common points between the geometrical figures established for said receiver nodes;
• and
• means for estimating the position of said first acoustic linear antenna relative to said second acoustic linear antenna as a function of said set of common points.