Improving Reliability of Particle Filter-Based Localization in Wireless Sensor Networks via Hybrid Particle/FIR Filtering

The need for accurate, fast, and reliable indoor localization using wireless sensor networks (WSNs) has recently grown in diverse areas of industry. Accurate localization in cluttered and noisy environments is commonly provided by means of a mathematical algorithm referred to as a state estimator or filter. The particle filter (PF), which is the most commonly used filter in localization, suffers from the sample impoverishment problem under typical conditions of real-time localization based on WSNs. This paper proposes a novel hybrid particle/finite impulse response (FIR) filtering algorithm for improving reliability of PF-based localization schemes under harsh conditions causing sample impoverishment. The hybrid particle/FIR filter detects the PF failures and recovers the failed PF by resetting the PF using the output of an auxiliary FIR filter. Combining the regularized particle filter (RPF) and the extended unbiased FIR (EFIR) filter, the hybrid RP/EFIR filter is constructed in this paper. Through simulations, the hybrid RP/EFIR filter demonstrates its improved reliability and ability to recover the RPF from failures.