Time of Flight Detection Signal Categorization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for determining the position of a device using time of flight measurements, such as in GPS systems, require a large number of arithmetic operations, leading to high power consumption and inefficiency.
Innovation Solution
A method that categorizes sections of the received signal and accumulates them according to categories, reducing the number of arithmetic operations required for correlation calculations, thereby decreasing power consumption and improving efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If traditional correlation calculation methods are used for time of flight detection, then measurement precision is maintained, but the number of arithmetic operations increases significantly leading to high power consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the correlation calculation process into multiple stages: initial coarse search over a wide time offset range, followed by refined searches in progressively smaller ranges around detected peaks. This segmentation allows the system to quickly eliminate large portions of the search space without performing exhaustive calculations, thereby reducing overall arithmetic operations and power consumption while maintaining measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary coarse correlation calculations to identify candidate time offsets before conducting more precise calculations. By预先 identifying regions of interest through low-resolution searches, the system avoids performing high-precision calculations across the entire search range, thus reducing total computational load and power consumption while preserving accuracy in the final measurement.
2Measurement precision
If exhaustive correlation calculations are performed across the entire time offset range, then measurement precision is ensured, but the time required for position determination increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the time offset search range into multiple stages: an initial broad search followed by concentrated refined searches around detected correlation peaks. This multi-stage segmentation enables the system to achieve high measurement precision by focusing computational resources on promising regions while quickly dismissing unlikely time offsets, thereby reducing total calculation time without sacrificing accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by performing correlation calculations only over necessary sub-ranges identified during the search process, rather than exhaustively calculating across the entire possible time offset range. The system calculates correlations selectively in regions where peaks are detected, performing fewer total operations while maintaining measurement precision through targeted refinement.
3Reliability
If the entire received signal is processed for correlation calculations, then complete position information is obtained, but the number of arithmetic operations and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and processes only the most relevant portions of the received signal for correlation calculations. By identifying and focusing computational efforts on time offset ranges where correlation peaks are detected, the system extracts sufficient position information without processing the entire signal range exhaustively, thereby reducing arithmetic operations and power consumption while maintaining position determination reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary processing to identify regions of interest in the received signal before conducting detailed correlation analysis. This preliminary action allows the system to extract only the necessary signal portions for accurate position determination, avoiding unnecessary calculations on irrelevant signal segments and thus reducing power consumption while preserving complete position information.
Data Source
AI summary
A position-determining apparatus, such as a GPS receiver, determines the position of the mobile device based on the time of flight of a transmitted probe signal using a method in which sections of the received signal is classified into two or more categories and accumulated according to categories before being used to compute the correlations familiar in the context of a matched filter. Using the method of the present invention to compute the correlations, and optionally applying additional time-saving techniques described herein, a position determination is achieved using arithmetic operations that are significantly reduced from that required in prior art methods to compute the correlations. The reduced number of arithmetic operations can reduce significantly the power consumption required of a device carrying out a method of the present invention, and thereby realizing a significant advantage.