Patent ID: 7145604

Claim:
A method for determining a spacing between a first sequence of signal values and a second sequence of signal values, wherein a third signal value of the second sequence is assigned to a first signal value and a second signal value each of the first sequence, the first and second signal values of the first sequence being disposed in succession in the first sequence, the third signal value lying temporally or spatially between the first and second signal values, wherein the method determines the spacing between the first and second sequences by determining at least one first spacing value therebetween based on the following steps: a) determining a mixing value from the first and second signal values by weighting these signal values; b) determining a mathematical spacing between the mixing value and the third signal value to determine a second spacing; c) determining an interval width value dependent on the interval width of an interval defined by the first and second signal values; d) mapping the second spacing value onto the first spacing value using the interval width value as a mapping parameter such that a mapping curve by which the second spacing value is mapped onto the first spacing value has at least two segments with different slopes, where the slope of the curve, at least in segments, is shallower for the second spacing values smaller than the interval width value than for the second spacing values larger than the interval width value; and such that for at least one second spacing value smaller than the interval width value, the determined first spacing value is smaller than the second spacing value.