Direction Finding for Software Defined Radios with Switched Uniform Circular Arrays

TL;DR

This paper introduces a cost-effective, software-defined radio-based system for accurate direction finding of signals in the 2.4 GHz band, suitable for robotics and communication applications, using a novel array and enhanced algorithms.

Contribution

It presents a low-cost, multi-channel DoA estimation system with a switched uniform circular array and improved MUSIC algorithm, enabling reliable performance in multipath environments.

Findings

Validated accuracy in anechoic chamber

Demonstrated robustness in outdoor multipath scenarios

Achieved 5 Hz DoA update rate with post-processing

Abstract

Accurate Direction of Arrival (DoA) estimation is critical for applications in robotics and communication, but high costs and complexity of coherent multi-channel receivers hinder accessibility. This work proposes a cost-effective DoA estimation system for continuous wave (CW) signals in the 2.4 GHz ISM band. A two-channel software-defined radio (SDR) with time-division multiplexing (TDM) enables pseudo-coherent sampling of an eight-element uniform circular array (UCA) with low hardware complexity. A central reference antenna mitigates phase jitter and sampling errors. The system applies an enhanced MUSIC algorithm with spatial smoothing to handle light multipath interference in indoor and outdoor environments. Experiments in an anechoic chamber validate accuracy under ideal conditions, while real-world tests confirm robust performance in multipath-prone scenarios. With 5 Hz DoA updates and post-processing to enhance tracking, the system provides an accessible and reliable solution for DoA estimation in real-world environments.