Patent ID: 8149968

Claim:
A method of estimating, in a receiver of a wireless communications system, a Signal-to-Interference Ratio of a radio channel from a first transmitter to the receiver, wherein signals comprising symbols of a given duration are transmitted over said radio channel on a number of sub-carrier frequencies; and wherein pilots with reference information whose transmitted value is known to the receiver are modulated on some of said sub-carrier frequencies in some symbols, wherein the method comprises the steps of: detecting for received pilots at least one parameter for signals received from said first transmitter; defining, in dependence of said at least one parameter, first groups of pilots that can be used for coherent combining; determining a number of pilots in each of said first groups and a number of such first groups that can be used for non-coherent combining in a second group; determining a channel estimate for each of said first groups of pilots from the received pilots in that group and the determined number of pilots in that group; determining a first covariance matrix estimate for each of said second groups from the received pilots in that group, the determined channel estimate for each first group in that second group, the determined number of pilots in each first group in that second group, and the determined number of first groups in that second group; defining in dependence of the presence of signals received from possible interfering transmitters a number of first covariance matrix estimates that can be averaged; determining a second covariance matrix estimate as an average of said number of first covariance matrix estimates; and determining from said channel estimates and said second covariance matrix estimate a Signal-to-Interference Ratio estimate for each of said second groups.