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Frequency Instability Impact of Low-Cost SDRs on Doppler-Based Localization Accuracy
Kacper Bednarz1, Jarosław Wojtuń1, Jan M Kelner1
1Institute of Communications Systems, Faculty of Electronics, Military University of Technology, 00-908 Warsaw, Poland.
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)
|February 24, 2024
Summary
High frequency stability in software-defined radio (SDR) is crucial for accurate signal Doppler frequency (SDF) location. Using an external frequency standard significantly reduces location errors for SDR-based sensors.
Area of Science:
- Electrical Engineering
- Signal Processing
- Radio Frequency Engineering
Background:
- Software-defined radio (SDR) platforms are increasingly utilized in radio frequency (RF) sensing applications.
- Accurate localization using the signal Doppler frequency (SDF) method is dependent on the frequency stability of the SDR.
- Existing SDR platforms may exhibit frequency instability, impacting the precision of SDF-based localization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the suitability of widely available SDR platforms for SDF localization.
- To investigate the impact of SDR frequency stability on localization accuracy.
- To identify optimal SDR platforms and frequency standards for enhanced SDF localization.
Main Methods:
- Characterization of frequency stability for selected SDR platforms, both with and without an external rubidium clock.
- Classification of SDR devices into three tiers based on measured frequency stability.
- Estimation of localization accuracy for each device class under short- and long-range scenarios via simulation.
Main Results:
- Localization error was reduced from 20 km to 30 m (long-range) and 15 km to 2 m (short-range) by incorporating an external frequency standard.
- The study established a direct correlation between SDR frequency stability and SDF localization accuracy.
- External frequency standards are essential for mitigating SDR frequency instability in Doppler effect-based location sensors.
Conclusions:
- The bladeRF 2.0 micro xA4 or USRP B200mini-i SDR platforms, coupled with a chip-scale atomic clock (CSAC SA.45s), are recommended for SDF location sensors.
- These configurations enable precise positioning of radio emitters with minimal errors.
- Future research should focus on developing compact, low-power, and stable SDF location sensor systems.
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