Localization of a distributed source which is `partially coherent' - modeling and Cramer Rao bounds

The problem of using antenna array measurements to estimate the bearing of a mobile communications user surrounded by local scatterers is considered. The concept of `partial coherence' is introduced to account for the temporal as well as spatial correlation effects often encountered in mobile radio propagation channels. A simple, intuitive parametric model for temporal channel correlation is presented. The result is an overall spatiotemporal channel model which is more realistic than formerly proposed models (which assume either full or zero temporal channel correlation). Thus, previously posed bearing estimation problems for a `distributed' or `scattered' source are generalized to a joint spatiotemporal parameter estimation problem. A study of the associated Cramer-Rao Bound for the case of known transmitted signal of constant modulus indicates that the inherent accuracy limitations associated with this generalized problem lie somewhere between the cases of zero and full temporal correlation and become more severe as temporal channel correlation increases.