arXiv subjects

Amir Weiss

Publications and source records attributed to Amir Weiss.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

Exploiting Temporal Structures of Cyclostationary Signals for Data-Driven Single-Channel Source Separation

We study the problem of single-channel source separation (SCSS), and focus on cyclostationary signals, which are particularly suitable in a variety of application domains. Unlike classical SCSS approaches, we consider a setting where only examples of the sources are available rather than their models, inspiring a data-driven approach. For source models with underlying cyclostationary Gaussian constituents, we establish a lower bound on the attainable mean squared error (MSE) for any separation method, model-based or data-driven. Our analysis further reveals the operation for optimal separation and the associated implementation challenges. As a computationally attractive alternative, we propose a deep learning approach using a U-Net architecture, which is competitive with the minimum MSE estimator. We demonstrate in simulation that, with suitable domain-informed architectural choices, our U-Net method can approach the optimal performance with substantially reduced computational burden.

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arXiv2022

Direct Localization in Underwater Acoustics via Convolutional Neural Networks: A Data-Driven Approach

Direct localization (DLOC) methods, which use the observed data to localize a source at an unknown position in a one-step procedure, generally outperform their indirect two-step counterparts (e.g., using time-difference of arrivals). However, underwater acoustic DLOC methods require prior knowledge of the environment, and are computationally costly, hence slow. We propose, what is to the best of our knowledge, the first data-driven DLOC method. Inspired by classical and contemporary optimal model-based DLOC solutions, and leveraging the capabilities of convolutional neural networks (CNNs), we devise a holistic CNN-based solution. Our method includes a specifically-tailored input structure, architecture, loss function, and a progressive training procedure, which are of independent interest in the broader context of machine learning. We demonstrate that our method outperforms attractive alternatives, and asymptotically matches the performance of an oracle optimal model-based solution.

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arXiv2021

"Self-Wiener" Filtering: Data-Driven Deconvolution of Deterministic Signals

We consider the problem of robust deconvolution, and particularly the recovery of an unknown deterministic signal convolved with a known filter and corrupted by additive noise. We present a novel, non-iterative data-driven approach. Specifically, our algorithm works in the frequency-domain, where it tries to mimic the optimal unrealizable non-linear Wiener-like filter as if the unknown deterministic signal were known. This leads to a threshold-type regularized estimator, where the threshold at each frequency is determined in a data-driven manner. We perform a theoretical analysis of our proposed estimator, and derive approximate formulas for its Mean Squared Error (MSE) at both low and high Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) regimes. We show that in the low SNR regime our method provides enhanced noise suppression, and in the high SNR regime it approaches the optimal unrealizable solution. Further, as we demonstrate in simulations, our solution is highly suitable for (approximately) bandlimited or frequency-domain sparse signals, and provides a significant gain of several dBs relative to other methods in the resulting MSE.

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arXiv2021

Blind Modulo Analog-to-Digital Conversion of Vector Processes

In a growing number of applications, there is a need to digitize a (possibly high) number of correlated signals whose spectral characteristics are challenging for traditional analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). Examples, among others, include multiple-input multiple-output systems where the ADCs must acquire at once several signals at a very wide but sparsely and dynamically occupied bandwidth supporting diverse services. In such scenarios, the resolution requirements can be prohibitively high. As an alternative, the recently proposed modulo-ADC architecture can in principle require dramatically fewer bits in the conversion to obtain the target fidelity, but requires that spatiotemporal information be known and explicitly taken into account by the analog and digital processing in the converter, which is frequently impractical. Building on our recent work, we address this limitation and develop a blind version of the architecture that requires no such knowledge in the converter. In particular, it features an automatic modulo-level adjustment and a fully adaptive modulo-decoding mechanism, allowing it to asymptotically match the characteristics of the unknown input signal. Simulation results demonstrate the successful operation of the proposed algorithm.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2021

Blind Modulo Analog-to-Digital Conversion

In a growing number of applications, there is a need to digitize signals whose spectral characteristics are challenging for traditional Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADCs). Examples, among others, include systems where the ADC must acquire at once a very wide but sparsely and dynamically occupied bandwidth supporting diverse services, as well as systems where the signal of interest is subject to strong narrowband co-channel interference. In such scenarios, the resolution requirements can be prohibitively high. As an alternative, the recently proposed modulo-ADC architecture can in principle require dramatically fewer bits in the conversation to obtain the target fidelity, but requires that information about the spectrum be known and explicitly taken into account by the analog and digital processing in the converter, which is frequently impractical. To address this limitation, we develop a blind version of the architecture that requires no such knowledge in the converter, without sacrificing performance. In particular, it features an automatic modulo-level adjustment and a fully adaptive modulo unwrapping mechanism, allowing it to asymptotically match the characteristics of the unknown input signal. In addition to detailed analysis, simulations demonstrate the attractive performance characteristics in representative settings.

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arXiv2021

One-Bit Direct Position Determination of Narrowband Gaussian Signals

One of the main drawbacks of the well-known Direct Position Determination (DPD) method is the requirement that raw signal data be transferred to a common processor. It would therefore be of high practical value if DPD$-$or a modified version thereof$-$could be successfully applied to a coarsely quantized version of the raw data, thus alleviating the requirements on the communication links between the different base stations. Motivated by the above, and inspired by recent work in the rejuvenated one-bit array processing field, we present One-Bit DPD: a method for direct localization based on one-bit quantized measurements. We show that despite the coarse quantization, the proposed method nonetheless yields an estimate for the unknown emitter position with appealing asymptotic properties. We further establish the underlying identifiability conditions of this model, which rely only on second-order statistics. Empirical simulation results corroborate our analytical derivations, demonstrating that much of the information regarding the unknown emitter position is preserved under this crude form of quantization.

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arXiv2020

Non-Iterative Blind Calibration of Nested Arrays with Asymptotically Optimal Weighting

Blind calibration of sensors arrays (without using calibration signals) is an important, yet challenging problem in array processing. While many methods have been proposed for "classical" array structures, such as uniform linear arrays, not as many are found in the context of the more "modern" sparse arrays. In this paper, we present a novel blind calibration method for $2$-level nested arrays. Specifically, and despite recent contradicting claims in the literature, we show that the Least-Squares (LS) approach can in fact be used for this purpose with such arrays. Moreover, the LS approach gives rise to optimally-weighted LS joint estimation of the sensors' gains and phases offsets, which leads to more accurate calibration, and in turn, to higher accuracy in subsequent estimation tasks (e.g., direction-of-arrival). Our method, which can be extended to $K$-level arrays ($K>2$), is superior to the current state of the art both in terms of accuracy and computational efficiency, as we demonstrate in simulation.

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arXiv2020

Enhanced Blind Calibration of Uniform Linear Arrays with One-Bit Quantization by Kullback-Leibler Divergence Covariance Fitting

One-bit quantization has recently become an attractive option for data acquisition in cutting edge applications, due to the increasing demand for low power and higher sampling rates. Subsequently, the rejuvenated one-bit array processing field is now receiving more attention, as "classical" array processing techniques are adapted / modified accordingly. However, array calibration, often an instrumental preliminary stage in array processing, has so far received little attention in its one-bit form. In this paper, we present a novel solution approach for the blind calibration problem, namely, without using known calibration signals. In order to extract information within the second-order statistics of the quantized measurements, we propose to estimate the unknown sensors' gains and phases offsets according to a Kullback-Leibler Divergence (KLD) covariance fitting criterion. We then provide a quasi-Newton solution algorithm, with a consistent initial estimate, and demonstrate the improved accuracy of our KLD-based estimates in simulations.

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arXiv2020

Iterative Symbol Recovery For Power Efficient DC Biased Optical OFDM Systems

Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has proven itself as an effective multi-carrier digital communication technique. In recent years the interest in optical OFDM has grown significantly, due to its spectral efficiency and inherent resilience to frequency-selective channels and to narrowband interference. For these reasons it is currently considered to be one of the leading candidates for deployment in short fiber links such as the ones intended for inter-data-center communications. In this paper we present a new power-efficient symbol recovery scheme for dc-biased optical OFDM (DCO-OFDM) in an intensity-modulation direct-detection (IM/DD) system. We introduce an alternative method for clipping in order to maintain a non-negative real-valued signal and still preserve information, which is lost when using clipping, and propose an iterative detection algorithm for this method. A reduction of $50\%$ in the transmitted optical power along with an increase of signal-independent noise immunity (gaining $3$[dB] in SNR), compared to traditional DCO-OFDM with a DC bias of $2$ standard deviations of the OFDM signal, is attained by our new scheme for a symbol error rate (SER) of $10^{-3}$ in a QPSK constellation additive white gaussian noise (AWGN) flat channel model.

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arXiv2020

Blind Determination of the Number of Sources Using Distance Correlation

A novel blind estimate of the number of sources from noisy, linear mixtures is proposed. Based on Székely et al.'s distance correlation measure, we define the Sources' Dependency Criterion (SDC), from which our estimate arises. Unlike most previously proposed estimates, the SDC estimate exploits the full independence of the sources and noise, as well as the non-Gaussianity of the sources (as opposed to the Gaussianity of the noise), via implicit use of high-order statistics. This leads to a more robust, resilient and stable estimate w.r.t. the mixing matrix and the noise covariance structure. Empirical simulation results demonstrate these virtues, on top of superior performance in comparison with current state of the art estimates.

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arXiv2020

The Extended "Sequentially Drilled" Joint Congruence Transformation and its Application in Gaussian Independent Vector Analysis

Independent Vector Analysis (IVA) has emerged in recent years as an extension of Independent Component Analysis (ICA) into multiple sets of mixtures, where the source signals in each set are independent, but may depend on source signals in the other sets. In a semi-blind IVA (or ICA) framework, information regarding the probability distributions of the sources may be available, giving rise to Maximum Likelihood (ML) separation. In recent work we have shown that under the multivariate Gaussian model, with arbitrary temporal covariance matrices (stationary or non-stationary) of the source signals, ML separation requires the solution of a "Sequentially Drilled" Joint Congruence (SeDJoCo) transformation of a set of matrices, which is reminiscent of (but different from) classical joint diagonalization. In this paper we extend our results to the IVA problem, showing how the ML solution for the Gaussian model (with arbitrary covariance and cross-covariance matrices) takes the form of an extended SeDJoCo problem. We formulate the extended problem, derive a condition for the existence of a solution, and propose two iterative solution algorithms. In addition, we derive the induced Cramér-Rao Lower Bound (iCRLB) on the resulting Interference-to-Source Ratios (ISR) matrices, and demonstrate by simulation how the ML separation obtained by solving the extended SeDJoCo problem indeed attains the iCRLB (asymptotically), as opposed to other separation approaches, which cannot exploit prior knowledge regarding the sources' distributions.

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arXiv2020

Performance Analysis of the Gaussian Quasi-Maximum Likelihood Approach for Independent Vector Analysis

Maximum Likelihood (ML) estimation requires precise knowledge of the underlying statistical model. In Quasi ML (QML), a presumed model is used as a substitute to the (unknown) true model. In the context of Independent Vector Analysis (IVA), we consider the Gaussian QML Estimate (QMLE) of the demixing matrices set and present an (approximate) analysis of its asymptotic separation performance. In Gaussian QML the sources are presumed to be Gaussian, with covariance matrices specified by some "educated guess". The resulting quasi-likelihood equations of the demixing matrices take a special form, recently termed an extended "Sequentially Drilled" Joint Congruence (SeDJoCo) transformation, which is reminiscent of (though essentially different from) classical joint diagonalization. We show that asymptotically this QMLE, i.e., the solution of the resulting extended SeDJoCo transformation, attains perfect separation (under some mild conditions) regardless of the sources' true distributions and/or covariance matrices. In addition, based on the "small-errors" assumption, we present a first-order perturbation analysis of the extended SeDJoCo solution. Using the resulting closed-form expressions for the errors in the solution matrices, we provide closed-form expressions for the resulting Interference-to-Source Ratios (ISRs) for IVA. Moreover, we prove that asymptotically the ISRs depend only on the sources' covariances, and not on their specific distributions. As an immediate consequence of this result, we provide an asymptotically attainable lower bound on the resulting ISRs. We also present empirical results, corroborating our analytical derivations, of three simulation experiments concerning two possible model errors - inaccurate covariance matrices and sources' distribution mismodeling.

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arXiv2020

Asymptotically Optimal Blind Calibration of Uniform Linear Sensor Arrays for Narrowband Gaussian Signals

An asymptotically optimal blind calibration scheme of uniform linear arrays for narrowband Gaussian signals is proposed. Rather than taking the direct Maximum Likelihood (ML) approach for joint estimation of all the unknown model parameters, which leads to a multi-dimensional optimization problem with no closed-form solution, we revisit Paulraj and Kailath's (P-K's) classical approach in exploiting the special (Toeplitz) structure of the observations' covariance. However, we offer a substantial improvement over P-K's ordinary Least Squares (LS) estimates by using asymptotic approximations in order to obtain simple, non-iterative, (quasi-)linear Optimally-Weighted LS (OWLS) estimates of the sensors gains and phases offsets with asymptotically optimal weighting, based only on the empirical covariance matrix of the measurements. Moreover, we prove that our resulting estimates are also asymptotically optimal w.r.t. the raw data, and can therefore be deemed equivalent to the ML Estimates (MLE), which are otherwise obtained by joint ML estimation of all the unknown model parameters. After deriving computationally convenient expressions of the respective Cramér-Rao lower bounds, we also show that our estimates offer improved performance when applied to non-Gaussian signals (and/or noise) as quasi-MLE in a similar setting. The optimal performance of our estimates is demonstrated in simulation experiments, with a considerable improvement (reaching an order of magnitude and more) in the resulting mean squared errors w.r.t. P-K's ordinary LS estimates. We also demonstrate the improved accuracy in a multiple-sources directions-of-arrivals estimation task.

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arXiv2020

Blind Direction-of-Arrival Estimation in Acoustic Vector-Sensor Arrays via Tensor Decomposition and Kullback-Leibler Divergence Covariance Fitting

A blind Direction-of-Arrivals (DOAs) estimate of narrowband signals for Acoustic Vector-Sensor (AVS) arrays is proposed. Building upon the special structure of the signal measured by an AVS, we show that the covariance matrix of all the received signals from the array admits a natural low-rank 4-way tensor representation. Thus, rather than estimating the DOAs directly from the raw data, our estimate arises from the unique parametric Canonical Polyadic Decomposition (CPD) of the observations' Second-Order Statistics (SOSs) tensor. By exploiting results from fundamental statistics and the recently re-emerging tensor theory, we derive a consistent blind CPD-based DOAs estimate without prior assumptions on the array configuration. We show that this estimate is a solution to an equivalent approximate joint diagonalization problem, and propose an ad-hoc iterative solution. Additionally, we derive the Cramér-Rao lower bound for Gaussian signals, and use it to derive the iterative Fisher scoring algorithm for the computation of the Maximum Likelihood Estimate (MLE) in this particular signal model. We then show that the MLE for the Gaussian model can in fact be used to obtain improved DOAs estimates for non-Gaussian signals as well (under mild conditions), which are optimal under the Kullback-Leibler divergence covariance fitting criterion, harnessing additional information encapsulated in the SOSs. Our analytical results are corroborated by simulation experiments in various scenarios, which also demonstrate the considerable improved accuracy w.r.t. a competing state-of-the-art blind estimate for AVS arrays, reducing the resulting root mean squared error by up to more than an order of magnitude.

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arXiv2018

A Maximum Likelihood-Based Minimum Mean Square Error Separation and Estimation of Stationary Gaussian Sources from Noisy Mixtures

In the context of Independent Component Analysis (ICA), noisy mixtures pose a dilemma regarding the desired objective. On one hand, a "maximally separating" solution, providing the minimal attainable Interference-to-Source-Ratio (ISR), would often suffer from significant residual noise. On the other hand, optimal Minimum Mean Square Error (MMSE) estimation would yield estimates which are the "closest possible" to the true sources, often at the cost of compromised ISR. In this work, we consider noisy mixtures of temporally-diverse stationary Gaussian sources in a semi-blind scenario, which conveniently lends itself to either one of these objectives. We begin by deriving the ML Estimates (MLEs) of the unknown (deterministic) parameters of the model: the mixing matrix and the (possibly different) noise variances in each sensor. We derive the likelihood equations for these parameters, as well as the corresponding Cramér-Rao lower bound, and propose an iterative solution for obtaining the MLEs. Based on these MLEs, the asymptotically-optimal "maximally separating" solution can be readily obtained. However, we also present the ML-based MMSE estimate of the sources, alongside a frequency-domain-based computationally efficient scheme, exploiting their stationarity. We show that this estimate is asymptotically optimal and attains the (oracle) MMSE lower bound. Furthermore, for non-Gaussian signals, we show that this estimate serves as a Quasi ML (QML)-based Linear MMSE (LMMSE) estimate, and attains the (oracle) LMMSE lower bound asymptotically. Empirical results of three simulation experiments are presented, corroborating our analytical derivations.

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arXiv2017

First-Order Perturbation Analysis of the SECSI Framework for the Approximate CP Decomposition of 3-D Noise-Corrupted Low-Rank Tensors

The Semi-Algebraic framework for the approximate Canonical Polyadic (CP) decomposition via SImultaneaous matrix diagonalization (SECSI) is an efficient tool for the computation of the CP decomposition. The SECSI framework reformulates the CP decomposition into a set of joint eigenvalue decomposition (JEVD) problems. Solving all JEVDs, we obtain multiple estimates of the factor matrices and the best estimate is chosen in a subsequent step by using an exhaustive search or some heuristic strategy that reduces the computational complexity. Moreover, the SECSI framework retains the option of choosing the number of JEVDs to be solved, thus providing an adjustable complexity-accuracy trade-off. In this work, we provide an analytical performance analysis of the SECSI framework for the computation of the approximate CP decomposition of a noise corrupted low-rank tensor, where we derive closed-form expressions of the relative mean square error for each of the estimated factor matrices. These expressions are obtained using a first-order perturbation analysis and are formulated in terms of the second-order moments of the noise, such that apart from a zero mean, no assumptions on the noise statistics are required. Simulation results exhibit an excellent match between the obtained closed-form expressions and the empirical results. Moreover, we propose a new Performance Analysis based Selection (PAS) scheme to choose the final factor matrix estimate. The results show that the proposed PAS scheme outperforms the existing heuristics, especially in the high SNR regime.

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