Robust maximum likelihood acoustic source localization in wireless sensor networks

Sensor measurements in a wireless sensor network (WSN) may significantly deviate from a commonly used Gaussian noise model due to harsh operating conditions, unreliable wireless communication links, or sensor failures. In this work, a mixed Gaussian and impulse noise model is proposed to more accurately model these types of non-Gaussian noise. However, existing maximum likelihood (ML) acoustic energy based source localization algorithms are very sensitive to non-Gaussian noise perturbations. To mitigate this shortcoming, a novel M-estimate based robust estimation formulation is derived. Extensive simulation results demonstrated superior and consistent performance advantage of this robust estimation approach compared to conventional ML estimates over a wide range of practical scenarios.