Analysis of Error in Sound Sources Position Estimation with Microphone Arrays

This paper presents a study of errors in sound source position estimation with two microphone arrays. At least two microphone arrays are needed to estimate the position of sound sources, and the position is obtained by solving a system of linear equations whose coefficients depend on the estimated angles of arrival. Due to errors in the estimation of the direction of arrival, the estimated positions of the sound sources could be wrong. Furthermore, the statistical distribution of the position error is not unique in the surveillance area. A mathematical upper bound for the error at each position has been obtained, but this bound is not accurate enough for real applications, which motivates the development of an alternative method based on Monte-Carlo simulations. This method has been applied to a two-array system, showing that the area where the position is accurately estimated is small, suggesting the use of array networks for surveillance of wide areas.