Patent ID: 7606334

Claim:
A method for estimating in a mobile telecommunications terminal a transfer function of a transmission channel over which a pilot signal and a data signal are transmitted to the terminal, said pilot signal comprising sets of known symbols each transmitted over a given time slot, and said data signal comprising dedicated pilot fields comprising respective sets of known symbols each transmitted over a respective time slot, comprising, within the mobile telecommunications terminal: obtaining first and second channel estimates from said pilot signal and said data signal, respectively, received by the terminal; combining said first and second channel estimates to obtain final combined channel estimates; obtaining said first and second channel estimates over a basic estimation reference time; interpolating said second channel estimates over said basic estimation reference time to produce a number of interpolated second channel estimates over said basic estimation reference time derived from said data signal equal to the number of said first channel estimates over said basic estimation reference time derived from said pilot signal; and obtaining said final combined channel estimates as a sum of said first channel estimates and said interpolated second channel estimates.