Data transfer minimization for coherent passive location systems

Coherent passive location systems derive their optimal detection and location estimation capabilities by cross-correlating signal segments observed at physically separate receivers. They are inherently robust. Performance characteristics and system requirements including observation intervals, data transfer, Doppler compensation, and adaptive thresholding are presented for the fundamental two-receiver case. For many potential systems, particularly those that must operate from mobile platforms, techniques that minimize data transfer requirements while maintaining reliable system performance must be carefully considered during system design. Performance losses of several candidate data transfer reduction techniques of varying complexity are compared with minimal bounds obtained from rate distortion theory.