An exact maximum likelihood registration algorithm for data fusion

Data fusion is a process dealing with the association, correlation, and combination of data and information from multiple sources to achieve refined position and identity estimates. We consider the registration problem, which is a prerequisite process of a data fusion system to accurately estimate and correct systematic errors. An exact maximum likelihood (EML) algorithm for registration is presented. The algorithm is implemented using a recursive two-step optimization that involves a modified Gauss-Newton procedure to ensure fast convergence. Statistical performance of the algorithm is also investigated, including its consistency and efficiency discussions. In particular, the explicit formulas for both the asymptotic covariance and the Cramer-Rao bound (CRB) are derived. Finally, simulated and real-life multiple radar data are used to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm.