Patent ID: 7990317

Claim:
A method for estimating a delay time of a propagation path of, the method comprising: detecting a first plurality of signals at a first location; detecting a second plurality of signals at a second location; determining which signals of the first plurality and which signals of the second plurality are indicative of coming from a common source; determining pairs of signals indicative of coming from a common source, wherein a pair of signals comprises a signal from the first plurality and a signal from the second plurality; determining time delays for the pairs of signals indicative of coming from the common source, wherein a time delay indicates a time difference of arrival at a third location between reception of a signal from the first location and the second location; determining a maximum time delay from among the determined time delays; selecting a set of signals exhibiting the maximum time delay; and estimating a propagation delay from the third location to the second location by combining propagation times of the selected set of signals between the first location and the third location and between the first location and the second location, together with an observed time delay at the third location of the selected set of signals.