Noncooperative maneuvering target motion analysis is one of the challenging tasks in the field of underwater target localization and tracking for passive sonar. Underwater noncooperative targets often perform various maneuvers, and the targets are commonly modeled as a combination of constant-velocity models and coordinate-turn models with unknown turning rates. Traditional algorithms for Doppler-bearing target motion analysis are incapable of processing noncooperative maneuvering targets because the algorithms rely on a priori information of the turning rate and the center frequency. To address these shortcomings, this paper proposes the joint estimated adaptive unscented Kalman filter (JE-AUKF) algorithm. The JE-AUKF places the center frequency and turning rate into the state vector and constructs a time-varying state model that self-adapts to a maneuvering target. The JE-AUKF also introduces a time-varying fading factor into the process noise covariance matrix to improve the tracking performance. Simulations and sea trials are conducted to compare the performance of the JE-AUKF with the iterative unscented Kalman filter, the interacting multiple model-unscented Kalman filter, the interacting multiple model-iterative unscented Kalman filter, and the interacting multiple model-joint estimated unscented Kalman filter. The result shows that the JE-AUKF achieves better tracking performance for noncooperative maneuvering targets.

The high-resolution direction of arrival (DOA) estimation is a prominent research issue in underwater acoustics. The existing high-resolution methods include subspace methods and sparse representation methods. However, the performance of subspace methods suffers from low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and limited snapshots conditions, and the computational complexity of sparse representation methods is too high. The neural network methods are emerging high-resolution methods. However, insufficient support for big data is frequently observed in underwater acoustics, and conventional network structures present challenges in further enhancing performance. To address the aforementioned problems, we propose a neural network method based on an improved self-attention module to achieve high accuracy and robust DOA estimation. First, we design a multi-head self-attention module with large-scale convolutional kernels and residual structures to improve the estimated accuracy. Second, we propose an improved input feature to enhance the robustness to non-uniform noise and unequal-intensity targets. The simulations demonstrate that the proposed method exhibits superior angle resolution compared to sparse representation methods under the same simulation conditions. The proposed method demonstrates exceptional accuracy and robustness in DOA estimation under challenging conditions of low SNR, limited snapshots, and unequal-intensity targets. The experimental results further prove the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Shallow water passive source localization is an essential problem in underwater detection and localization. Traditional matched-field processing (MFP) methods are sensitive to environment mismatches. Many neural network localization methods still have room for improvement in accuracy if they are further adjusted to underwater acoustic characteristics. To address these problems, we propose a deep learning localization method via improved input features and network structure, which can effectively estimate the depth and the closest point of approach (CPA) range of the acoustic source. Firstly, we put forward a feature preprocessing scheme to enhance the localization accuracy and robustness. Secondly, we design a deep learning network structure to improve the localization accuracy further. Finally, we propose a method of visualizing the network to optimize the estimated localization results. Simulations show that the accuracy of the proposed method is better than other compared features and network structures, and the robustness is significantly better than that of the MFP methods. Experimental results further prove the effectiveness of the proposed method.

The detection probability of underwater weak targets using active sonar is low, and inter-pulse coherent integration can improve the signal-to-noise ratio of ec The detection probability of underwater weak targets using active sonar is low, and inter-pulse coherent integration can improve the signal-to-noise ratio of ec

Line spectrum purification is a fundamental task in underwater detection and identification tasks. A dual-input architecture based on Dense U-net is introduced to extract clean line spectra from strong interference. The U-net model features a symmetric encoder–decoder structure that accepts two-dimensional data as both input and output. The DenseBlock, a core component of DenseNets, offers greater parameter efficiency compared to conventional convolutional layers. In this paper, standard convolutional layers inside the original U-net are replaced by DenseBlocks. This model possesses two input channels, thus allowing the time–frequency feature of the interference and that of the interference–target mixture to be fed simultaneously. With supervised learning, the model is capable of eliminating the strong interference components and background noise from the superimposed spectrum, thereby producing a purified target line spectrum. Compared to traditional interference suppression methods, this approach offers higher feature accuracy and greater signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR) gain. Moreover, the model is trainable using simulation datasets and then deployed to real-world measurements, demonstrating strong generalization capabilities—a valuable property given the limited availability of labeled samples in underwater detection tasks. Being data-driven, this method operates without requiring prior assumptions about the array configuration, and consequently exhibits greater resilience to array imperfections relative to conventional model-based interference suppression techniques. Simulation and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method achieves an output SINR improvement of more than 8 dB under low SINR conditions and exhibits significantly better robustness to array position errors than conventional methods, verifying its excellent line spectrum purification capability.