Wideband direction-of-arrival estimation using frequency-domain processing approach

A new wideband direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation approach based on frequency-domain frequency-invariant beamformers (FDFIBs) is proposed. It is able to resolve correlated source signals and can be applicable to arrays of arbitrary geometry without preliminary DOA estimate. A set of frequency-domain beamformers with constant mainlobe and lower sidelobes is designed. Lower sidelobe can suppress strong interfering signals effectively. By appropriately designing the weights for frequency-domain beamformers at different frequencies, the frequency-invariant beam-patterns are obtained. Numerical results show that the proposed frequency-domain processing DOA estimator can provide better resolution at lower signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and lower root-mean-square error (RMSE) of the DOA estimate compared with the existing method.