A Comparative Study of UWB-based True-Range Positioning Algorithms using Experimental Data

In this paper, we analyze five true-range positioning algorithms for UWB-based localization systems. The evaluated algorithms are: (i) trilateration using a geometric method, (ii) a closed-form multilateration solution using least squares, (iii) an iterative approach using first-order Taylor series, a recursive solution based on (iv) the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), and (v) the Unscented Kalman Filter (UKF). In contrast to the existing comparative studies in literature, which are solely based on simulation results, our analysis is based on experimental evaluations. The evaluated algorithms are strictly chosen for a scenario, where a true-range multilateration method is applicable. True-range means the accuracy of the measured ranges is not influenced by the clock drift errors. The performance comparison of the five algorithms is examined and discussed in the paper.