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In this letter, we propose a new non-binary modulation which allows both Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) synchronization and the demodulation of non-binary symbols, without the need of a pilot signal, with the aim to provide a fast first position, velocity and time fix. The waveform is constructed as the product of i) a pseudo-random noise sequence with good auto-correlation and cross-correlation properties, and ii) a chirp spread spectrum family, which allows to demodulate non-binary symbols even if the signal phase is unknown. In order to demodulate the data, a bank of non-coherent matched filters is proposed. Because of the particular modulation structure, the receiver is capable to demodulate the navigation message faster while allowing the basic GNSS signal processing functionalities. Illustrative results are provided to support the discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The popular Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) is known to be a sub‐optimal frequency estimation technique for a finite transform length. In order to approach the Cramer‐Rao Lower Bound (CRLB), many refinement techniques have been considered, but little considering both zero padding or tapering, also known as windowing or apodisation. In this paper, a frequency estimator with closed‐form combination of three DFT samples is generalized to zero padding and tapered data within the class of cosine windowing. Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) is shown to approach the CRLB in the case of a single tone signal with additive white Gaussian noise. Compared to state‐of‐the‐art techniques, the proposed algorithm improves the frequency RMSE up to 1 dB when using significant zero‐padding lengths (K ≥ 2 N) and for small to moderate SNR, which is the most challenging case for practical radar applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work addressed the problem of miscalibration or decalibration of mobile stereo/bi-monocular camera setups. We especially focused on the context of autonomous vehicles. In real-world conditions, any optical system is subject to various mechanical stresses, caused by vibration, rough handling, collisions, or even thermal expansion. Such mechanical stresses change the stereo pair geometry, and as a consequence, the pre-calculated epipolar geometry or any geometric-based approach is no longer valid. The standard method, which consists of estimating the calibration online, fails in such harsh conditions. The proposed method was based on a robust linearly constrained state estimation technique able to mitigate the model mismatch without estimating the model parameters. Therefore, our solution was able to mitigate the errors with negligible use of additional computing resources. We propose to use a linearly constrained extended Kalman filter for a stereo-based visual odometry or simultaneous localization and mapping approach. Simulations confirmed that the method kept the system (and objects of the map) localized in real-time even with huge miscalibration errors and parameter variations. The results confirmed that the method was robust to a miscalibration of all the extrinsic calibration parameters even when the standard online calibration procedure failed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a novel statistical prediction of monopulse errors [1] for a radar Swerling III-IV target embedded in noise or noise jamming where multiple observations are available. First, the study of the maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) of the complex monopulse ratio for a Swerling III-IV target embedded in spatially white noise allows us to extend the use of the MLE practical approximate form introduced by Mosca [2] for Swerling 0-I-II cases. Afterward, we derive analytical formulas for both the mean and variance of the MLE in approximate form conditioned by the usual detection step performed on the sum channel of a monopulse antenna. Last, we provide a comparison of target direction of arrival (DOA) estimation performance based on monopulse ratio estimation as a function of the Swerling model in the context of a multifunction radar.

The Gaussianity and efficiency of the conditional maximum-likelihood (CML) estimator in the multiple-parameters case is established in comparison with the deterministic Cramer-Rao bound. The results hold good for noncircular complex Gaussian noise and Monte Carlo simulations are provided in order to show the accuracy of the analysis.

The derivation of lower bonds for deterministic parameters conditioned by a binary hypothesis testing problem was addressed as a contribution to the theoretical formulation of the joint detection and estimation problem. It offers the signal processing community the tool required to look again at comparisons of bound tightness, including detection conditioning when it appears to be present in the actual implementation.

Summary: Standard state estimation techniques, ranging from the linear Kalman filter (KF) to nonlinear extended KF (EKF), sigma‐point or particle filters, assume a perfectly known system model, that is, process and measurement functions and system noise statistics (both the distribution and its parameters). This is a strong assumption which may not hold in practice, reason why several approaches have been proposed for robust filtering, mainly because the filter performance is particularly sensitive to different model mismatches. In the context of linear filtering, a solution to cope with possible system matrices mismatch is to use linear constraints. In this contribution we further explore the extension and use of recent results on linearly constrained KF for robust nonlinear filtering under both process and measurement model mismatch. We first investigate how linear equality constraints can be incorporated within the EKF and derive a new linearly constrained extended KF (LCEKF). Then we detail its use to mitigate parametric modeling errors in the nonlinear process and measurement functions. Numerical results are provided to show the performance improvement of the new LCEKF for robust vehicle navigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The derivation of tight estimation lower bounds is a key tool to design and assess the performance of new estimators. In this contribution, first, the authors derive a new compact Cramér–Rao bound (CRB) for the conditional signal model, where the deterministic parameter's vector includes a real positive amplitude and the signal phase. Then, the resulting CRB is particularised to the delay, Doppler, phase, and amplitude estimation for band‐limited narrowband signals, which are found in a plethora of applications, making such CRB a key tool of broad interest. This new CRB expression is particularly easy to evaluate because it only depends on the signal samples, then being straightforward to evaluate independently of the particular baseband signal considered. They exploit this CRB to properly characterise the achievable performance of satellite‐based navigation systems and the so‐called real‐time kinematics (RTK) solution. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first time these techniques are theoretically characterised from the baseband delay/phase estimation processing to position computation, in terms of the CRB and maximum‐likelihood estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of multiple change-points estimation, performance analysis of estimators such as the maximum likelihood is often difficult to assess since the regularity assumptions are not met. Focusing on the estimators variance, one can, however, use lower bounds on the mean square error. In this paper, we derive the so-called Weiss–Weinstein bound (WWB) that is known to be an efficient tool in signal processing to obtain a fair overview of the estimation behavior. Contrary to several works about performance analysis in the change-point literature, our study is adapted to multiple changes. First, useful formulas are given for a general estimation problem whatever the considered distribution of the data. Second, closed-form expressions are given in the cases of Gaussian observations with changes in the mean and/or the variance, and changes in the mean rate of a Poisson distribution. Furthermore, a semidefinite programming formulation of the minimization procedure is given in order to compute the tightest WWB. Specifically, it consists of finding the unique minimum volume covering the set constituted by hyperellipsoid elements that are generated using the derived candidate WWB matrices w.r.t. the so-called Loewner partial ordering. Finally, simulation results are provided to show the good behavior of the proposed bound. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A fairly general class of Bayesian “large-error” lower bounds of the Weiss–Weinstein family, essentially free from regularity conditions on the probability density functions support, and for which a limiting form yields a generalized Bayesian Cramér–Rao bound (BCRB), is introduced. In a large number of cases, the generalized BCRB appears to be the Bobrovsky–Mayer-Wolf–Zakai bound (BMZB). Interestingly enough, a regularized form of the Bobrovsky–Zakai bound (BZB), applicable when the support of the prior is a constrained parameter set, is obtained. Modified Weiss–Weinstein bound and BZB which limiting form is the BMZB are proposed, in expectation of an increased tightness in the threshold region. Some of the proposed results are exemplified with a reference problem in signal processing: the Gaussian observation model with parameterized mean and uniform prior. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We consider deterministic parameter estimation and the situation where the probability density function (p.d.f.) parameterized by unknown deterministic parameters results from the marginalization of a joint p.d.f. depending on random variables as well. Unfortunately, in the general case, this marginalization is mathematically intractable, which prevents from using the known standard deterministic lower bounds (LBs) on the mean squared error (MSE). Actually the general case can be tackled by embedding the initial observation space in a hybrid one where any standard LB can be transformed into a modified one fitted to nonstandard deterministic estimation, at the expense of tightness however. Furthermore, these modified LBs (MLBs) appears to include the submatrix of hybrid LBs which is an LB for the deterministic parameters. Moreover, since in the nonstandard estimation, maximum likelihood estimators (MLEs) can be no longer derived, suboptimal nonstandard MLEs (NSMLEs) are proposed as being a substitute. We show that any standard LB on the MSE of MLEs has a nonstandard version lower bounding the MSE of NSMLEs. We provide an analysis of the relative performance of the NSMLEs, as well as a comparison with the MLBs for a large class of estimation problems. Last, the general approach introduced is exemplified, among other things, with a new look at the well-known Gaussian complex observation models. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This letter investigates hybrid lower bounds on the mean square error in order to predict the so-called threshold effect. A new family of tighter hybrid large error bounds based on linear transformations (discrete or integral) of a mixture of the McAulay–Seidman bound and the Weiss–Weinstein bound is provided in multivariate parameters case with multiple test points. For use in applications, we give a closed-form expression of the proposed bound for a set of Gaussian observation models with parameterized mean, including tones estimation which exemplifies the threshold prediction capability of the proposed bound. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We consider Direction of Arrival (DoA) estimation in the case of two closely spaced sources. In this case, most high resolution techniques fail to estimate the two DoAs if the waveforms are highly correlated. Maximum Likelihood Estimators (MLE) are known to be more robust, but their excessive computational load limits their use in practice. In this paper, we propose an asymptotic approximation of the Unconditional Maximum Likelihood (UML) procedure in the case of a Uniform Linear Array (ULA) and two closely spaced targets. This approximation is based on an asymptotically (in the number of observations) equivalent formulation of the UML criterion, and on its Taylor series approximation for small DoA separation. This simplified procedure, which requires solving a 1D-optimization problem only, is shown to be accurate for source separation lower than half the mainlobe. Furthermore, it outperforms conventional high resolution algorithms in the case of two correlated sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provided that one keeps in mind the Cram?er-Rao bound (CRB) limitations, that is, to become an overly optimistic lower bound when the observation conditions degrades, the CRB is a lower bound of great interest for analysis and design of a system of measurement in the asymptotic region. As a contribution, we introduce an original framework taking into account most (and possibly all) of the factors impacting the asymptotic estimation performance of the parameters of interest via equality constraints, leading to direct algebraic computations of constrained CRB. For complex systems, derivation of analytical expression of CRB is either impossible or inefficient. For application to active systems of measurement such as radar, we provide the general form of the Fisher information matrix (FIM) for multiple conditional models, which generally precludes the derivation of an analytical expression of the CRB for scenarios including interference and sensors modelling errors. We show that the proposed framework can also be used efficiently to generate new closed-form expressions of CRB, although this is not its main aim. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many radar applications extended targets appear together with point targets. An important problem in particular for tracking algorithms is to rapidly detect these extended targets and to determine their centroid and shape. In a previous paper we have developed and characterized estimators for the centroid and extension of an extended target based on the generalized monopulse ratio when the target is modeled as a number of independent Swerling I?II point scatterers. However, the Swerling I?II model is a very rough approximation for the behavior of a real complex target. The work presented here extends the statistical characterizations to mixtures of independent Swerling I?II point scatterers and deterministic Swerling 0 point scatterers which may, however, vary arbitrarily in time. Such a mixture of deterministic and stochastic scatter model is able to provide good approximations of real target radar cross sections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many radar applications extended targets appear together with point targets. An important problem in particular for tracking algorithms is to rapidly detect these extended targets and to determine their centroid and shape. We present a detector for extended targets and maximum-likelihood (ML) estimators for the centroid and the extension which are based only on the outputs of the generalized monopulse ratio. The generalized monopulse ratio is based on the sum and difference beams generated from the digital outputs of arbitrary subarrays of a planar array. It is therefore applicable to various kinds of modern array antennas. The extended target is characterized by an ellipse in the azimuth-elevation plane. The statistical performance of the centroid and the extension estimators is characterized by analytically their mean and variance. Numerical simulations indicate that these statistical characterizations are accurate and that small extended targets can be detected early. The statistical performance measures can therefore also be used for parametric system studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Cramér–Rao bounds (CRB) is a lower bound of great interest for system analysis and design in the asymptotic region [high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and/or large number of snapshots], as it is simple to calculate and it is usually possible to obtain closed form expressions. The first part of the paper is a generalization to complex parameters of the Barankin rationale for deriving MSE lower bounds, that is the minimization of a norm under a set of linear constraints. With the norm minimization approach the study of Fisher information matrix (FIM) singularity, constrained CRB and regularity conditions become straightforward corollaries of the derivation. The second part provides new results useful for system analysis and design: a general reparameterization inequality, the equivalence between reparameterization and equality constraints, and an explicit relationship between parameters unidentifiability and FIM singularity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Estimation of the direction of arrival (DOA) of a signal source by means of a monopulse estimation scheme is one of the oldest and most widely used high-precision techniques in operational tracking systems. Although the statistical performance of this estimation technique has been extensively investigated, it has never been analyzed from the viewpoint of the joint detection-estimation problem. As a consequence the historical form of the (detector-angle estimator) solution has become the usual form implemented in operational tracking systems and may restrict their accessible performance. Indeed, the application of the optimal detection theory reveals alternative (detector-angle estimator) solutions providing other relevant trade-offs in detection-estimation performances that are worth considering to optimize the performance of the tracking system according to the scenario. Both stochastic signal model (Rayleigh-type signal source) and deterministic signal model (signal source of unknown amplitude) have been investigated, leading to a novel but equally simple (detector-angle estimator) solution through which analytical statistical prediction has been derived. Comparison of detection-estimation performances of new and usual solutions is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of carrier phase data is the main driver for high-precision Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) positioning solutions, such as Real-Time Kinematic (RTK). However, carrier phase observations are ambiguous by an unknown number of cycles, and their use in RTK relies on the process of mapping real-valued ambiguities to integer ones, so-called Integer Ambiguity Resolution (IAR). The main goal of IAR is to enhance the position solution by virtue of its correlation with the estimated integer ambiguities. With the deployment of new GNSS constellations and frequencies, a large number of observations is available. While this is generally positive, positioning in medium and long baselines is challenging due to the atmospheric residuals. In this context, the process of solving the complete set of ambiguities, so-called Full Ambiguity Resolution (FAR), is limiting and may lead to a decreased availability of precise positioning. Alternatively, Partial Ambiguity Resolution (PAR) relaxes the condition of estimating the complete vector of ambiguities and, instead, finds a subset of them to maximize the availability. This article reviews the state-of-the-art PAR schemes, addresses the analytical performance of a PAR estimator following a generalization of the Cramér–Rao Bound (CRB) for the RTK problem, and introduces Precision-Driven PAR (PD-PAR). The latter constitutes a new PAR scheme which employs the formal precision of the (potentially fixed) positioning solution as selection criteria for the subset of ambiguities to fix. Numerical simulations are used to showcase the performance of conventional FAR and FAR approaches, and the proposed PD-PAR against the generalized CRB associated with PAR problems. Real-data experimental analysis for a medium baseline complements the synthetic scenario. The results demonstrate that (i) the generalization for the RTK CRB constitutes a valid lower bound to assess the asymptotic behavior of PAR estimators, and (ii) the proposed PD-PAR technique outperforms existing FAR and PAR solutions as a non-recursive estimator for medium and long baselines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A wide variety of processing incorporates a binary detection test that restricts the set of observations available for parameter estimation and requires to take this statistical conditioning into account to compute the Cramér-Rao bound (CRB). Therefore, we propose a derivation of the CRB for the deterministic signal model conditioned by the energy detector widely used in signal processing applications. This derivation has lead us to introduce novel identities on some conditional expectations of complex circular Gaussian random vectors that may be useful for other derivations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that the standard state estimation technique performance is particularly sensitive to perfect system knowledge, where the underlying assumptions are: (i) Process and measurement functions and parameters are known, (ii) inputs are known, and (iii) noise statistics are known. These are rather strong assumptions in real-life applications; therefore, a robust filtering solution must be designed to cope with model misspecifications. A possible way to design robust filters is to exploit linear constraints (LCs) within the filter formulation. In this contribution we further explore the use of LCs, derive a linearly constrained extended Kalman filter (LCEKF) for systems affected by non-additive noise and system inputs, and discuss its use for model mismatch mitigation. Numerical results for a robust tracking and navigation problem are provided to show the performance improvement of the proposed LCEKF, with respect to state-of-the-art techniques, that is, a benchmark EKF without mismatch and a misspecified EKF not accounting for the mismatch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global Navigation Satellite System Reflectometry (GNSS-R) is a powerful way to retrieve information from a reflecting surface by exploiting GNSS as signals of opportunity. In dual antenna conventional GNSS-R architectures, the reflected signal is correlated with a clean replica to obtain the specular reflection point delay and Doppler estimates, which are further processed to obtain the GNSS-R product of interest. An important problem that may appear for low elevation satellites is signal crosstalk, that is the direct line-of-sight signal leaks into the antenna dedicated to the reflected signal. Such crosstalk may degrade the overall system performance if both signals are very close in time, similar to multipath in standard GNSS receivers, the reason why mitigation strategies must be accounted for. In this article: (i) we first provide a geometrical analysis to justify that the estimation performance is only affected for low height receivers; (ii) then, we analyze the impact of crosstalk if not taken into account, by comparing the single source conditional maximum likelihood estimator (CMLE) performance in a dual source context with the corresponding Cramér–Rao bound (CRB); (iii) we discuss dual source estimators as a possible mitigation strategy; and (iv) we investigate the performance of the so-called variance estimator, which is designed to eliminate the coherent signal part, compared to both the CRB and non-coherent dual source estimators. Simulation results are provided for representative GNSS signals to support the discussion. From this analysis, it is found that: (i) for low enough reflected-to-direct signal amplitude ratios (RDR), the crosstalk has no impact on standard single source CMLEs; (ii) for high enough signal-to-noise ratios (SNR), the dual source estimators are efficient irrespective of the RDR, then being a promising solution for any reflected signal scenario; (iii) non-coherent dual source estimators are also efficient at high SNR; and (iv) the variance estimator is efficient as long as the non-coherent part of the signal is dominant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluating the time-delay, Doppler effect and carrier phase of a received signal is a challenging estimation problem that was addressed in a large variety of remote sensing applications. This problem becomes more difficult and less understood when the signal is reflected off one or multiple surfaces and interferes with itself at the receiver stage. This phenomenon might deteriorate the overall system performance, as for the multipath effect in Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), and mitigation strategies must be accounted for. In other applications such as GNSS reflectometry (GNSS-R) it may be interesting to estimate the parameters of the reflected signal to deduce the geometry and the surface characteristics. In either case, a better understanding of this estimation problem is directly brought by the corresponding lower performance bounds. In the high signal-to-noise ratio regime of the Gaussian conditional signal model, the Cramér-Rao bound (CRB) provides an accurate lower bound in the mean square error sense. In this article, we derive a new compact CRB expression for the joint time-delay and Doppler estimation in a dual source context, considering a band-limited signal and its specular reflection. These compact CRBs are expressed in terms of the baseband signal samples, making them especially easy to use whatever the baseband signal considered, therefore being valid for a variety of remote sensors. This extends existing results in the single source context and opens the door to a plethora of usages to be discussed in the article. The proposed CRB expressions are validated in two representative navigation and radar examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since time-delay, Doppler effect and phase estimation are fundamental tasks in a plethora of engineering fields, tractable lower performance bounds for this problem are key tools of broad interest for a large variety of remote sensing applications. In the large sample regime and/or the high signal-to-noise ratio regime of the Gaussian conditional signal model, the Cramér–Rao bound (CRB) provides an accurate lower bound in the mean square error sense. In this contribution, we introduce firstly a new compact CRB expression for the joint time-delay and Doppler stretch estimation, considering a generic delayed and dilated band-limited signal. This generalizes known results for both wideband signals and the standard narrowband signal model where the Doppler effect on the band-limited baseband signal is not considered and amounts to a frequency shift. General compact closed-form CRB expressions for the amplitude and phase are also provided. These compact CRBs are expressed in terms of the baseband signal samples, making them especially easy to use whatever the baseband signal considered, therefore being valid for a variety of remote sensors. The new CRB expressions are validated in a positioning case study, both using synthetic and real data. These results show that the maximum likelihood estimator converges to the CRB at high signal-to-noise ratios, which confirms the exactness of the CRB. The CRB is further validated by comparing the ambiguity function and its 2nd order Taylor expansion where the perfect match also proves its exactness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) are the main source of position, navigation, and timing (PNT) information and will be a key player in the next-generation intelligent transportation systems and safety-critical applications, but several limitations need to be overcome to meet the stringent performance requirements. One of the open issues is how to provide precise PNT solutions in harsh propagation environments. Under nominal conditions, the former is typically achieved by exploiting carrier phase information through precise positioning techniques, but these methods are very sensitive to the quality of phase observables. Another option that is gaining interest in the scientific community is the use of large bandwidth signals, which allow obtaining a better baseband resolution, and therefore more precise code-based observables. Two options may be considered: (i) high-order binary offset carrier (HO-BOC) modulations or (ii) the concept of GNSS meta-signals. In this contribution, we assess the time-delay and phase maximum likelihood (ML) estimation performance limits of such signals, together with the performance translation into the position domain, considering single point positioning (SPP) and RTK solutions, being an important missing point in the literature. A comprehensive discussion is provided on the estimators' behavior, the corresponding ML threshold regions, the impact of good and bad satellite constellation geometries, and final conclusions on the best candidates, which may lead to precise solutions under harsh conditions. It is found that if the receiver is constrained by the receiver bandwidth, the best choices are the L1-M or E6-Public Regulated Service (PRS) signals. If the receiver is able to operate at 60 MHz, it is recommended to exploit the full-bandwidth Galileo E5 signal. In terms of robustness and performance, if the receiver can operate at 135 MHz, the best choice is to use the GNSS meta-signals E5 + E6 or B2 + B3, which provide the best overall performances regardless of the positioning method used, the satellite constellation geometry, or the propagation conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This contribution analyzes the fundamental performance limits of traditional two-step Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver architectures, which are directly linked to the achievable time-delay estimation performance. In turn, this is related to the GNSS baseband signal resolution, i.e., bandwidth, modulation, autocorrelation function, and the receiver sampling rate. To provide a comprehensive analysis of standard point positioning techniques, we consider the different GPS and Galileo signals available, as well as the signal combinations arising in the so-called GNSS meta-signal paradigm. The goal is to determine: (i) the ultimate achievable performance of GNSS code-based positioning systems; and (ii) whether we can obtain a GNSS code-only precise positioning solution and under which conditions. In this article, we provide clear answers to such fundamental questions, leveraging on the analysis of the Cramér–Rao bound (CRB) and the corresponding Maximum Likelihood Estimator (MLE). To determine such performance limits, we assume no external ionospheric, tropospheric, orbital, clock, or multipath-induced errors. The time-delay CRB and the corresponding MLE are obtained for the GPS L1 C/A, L1C, and L5 signals; the Galileo E1 OS, E6B, E5b-I, and E5 signals; and the Galileo E5b-E6 and E5a-E6 meta-signals. The results show that AltBOC-type signals (Galileo E5 and meta-signals) can be used for code-based precise positioning, being a promising real-time alternative to carrier phase-based techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global navigation satellite systems (GNSSs) play a key role in a plethora of applications, ranging from navigation and timing to Earth observation and space weather characterization. For navigation purposes, interference scenarios are among the most challenging operation conditions, with a clear impact on the maximum likelihood estimates (MLEs) of signal synchronization parameters. While several interference mitigation techniques exist, an approach for theoretically analyzing GNSS MLE performance degradation under interference, which is fundamental for system/receiver design, is lacking. The main goal of this contribution is to provide such analysis, by deriving closed-form expressions of the misspecified Cramér-Rao (MCRB) bound and estimation bias, for a generic GNSS signal corrupted by interference. The proposed bias and MCRB expressions are validated for a linear frequency-modulation chirp signal interference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monopulse is an established array processing technique for fast and accurate angle estimation. This technique has been generalized to space-time array processing of any dimension. The statistical performance of this generalized monopulse parameter estimation has been characterized for several target fluctuation models but not for all cases. This gap is filled by this paper. We derive the mean and variance of the complex and real and imaginary part of the averaged monopulse ratio for all Swerling target models, deterministic targets (Swerling 0 case), \chi^2 distributed targets with 4 degrees of freedom (Swerling 3 or 4 case) including a given detection threshold, for an arbitrary number of difference beams, and for an arbitrary number of noncoherent averaging of time snapshots. For completeness we give also the already known results for Rayleigh targets (Swerling 1 or 2 case) in the same notation. From these means and variances, the performance of all kinds of parameter estimates with the generalized monopulse formula can be calculated. Applications of these statistical descriptions are presented for planar arrays and adaptive beamforming and for space-time adaptive processing (STAP) for broadband interference suppression. From these examples some interesting conclusions can be drawn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]