Browsing by Author "Chowdhary, Abhilash"

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    Terrain Aided Navigation for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles with Local Gaussian Processes
    Chowdhary, Abhilash (Virginia Tech, 2017-06-28)
    Navigation of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) in the subsea environment is particularly challenging due to the unavailability of GPS because of rapid attenuation of electromagnetic waves in water. As a result, the AUV requires alternative methods for position estimation. This thesis describes a terrain-aided navigation approach for an AUV where, with the help of a prior depth map, the AUV localizes itself using altitude measurements from a multibeam DVL. The AUV simultaneously builds a probabilistic depth map of the seafloor as it moves to unmapped locations. The main contribution of this thesis is a new, scalable, and on-line terrain-aided navigation solution for AUVs which does not require the assistance of a support surface vessel. Simulation results on synthetic data and experimental results from AUV field trials in Panama City, Florida are also presented.