Parameter Estimation for Locally Linear FM Signals Using a Time-Frequency Hough Transform

An estimator for the phase parameters of mono- and multicomponent FM signals, with both good numerical properties and statistical performance is proposed. The proposed approach is based on the Hough transform of the pseudo-Wigner-Ville time-frequency distribution (PWVD). It is shown that the numerical properties of the estimator can be improved by varying the PWVD window length. The effect of the window time extent on the statistical performance of the estimator is delineated. Experimental data is used for validation of the statistical properties.