Synchronization and channel estimation with extended pilot symbols

摘要

A mobile communications system receiver has improved synchronization and channel estimation for receiving a transmitted signal passing through a radio channel. A processor receives and samples the transmitted signal for a plurality of timing hypotheses. A channel estimator hypothesizes unknown symbols at a pilot cluster of the sampled signal and estimates the radio channel of the pilot cluster for each hypothesized symbol sequence. The estimator determines an error corresponding to each hypothesized symbol sequence using the sampled signal, the estimated radio channel and the hypothesized symbols and determines actual timing estimates and actual radio channel estimates by selecting the radio channel estimates associated with the hypothesized symbols and the timing and hypothesis that minimizes the error.