Comparison of Hough Transform and particle filter methods of passive emitter geolocation using fusion of TDOA and AOA data

This paper compares the performance of passive RF emitter geolocation algorithms based on the Hough Transform and the particle filter. Three Hough Transform variants are considered: (a) the generalized Hough Transform, (b) the Randomized Hough Transform and (c) the Hybrid Hough Transform. In each case, the emitter is assumed to provide a signal from which angle of arrival measurements and time difference of arrival measurements can be made by pairs of mobile receiving platforms, such as fixed-wing UAVs or fast jets, as well as rotorcraft. Typical emitters include cellphones and other types of communication equipment. The paper demonstrates that the Hough Transform and the particle filter provide similar performance in terms of robustness of the RMS positional error and the computational time.