On the position error bound in cooperative networks: A geometric approach

Location-awareness is of great importance in future wireless networks. In harsh environments or when only limited infrastructure is available, cooperation among nodes can yield significant performance benefits. To realize these benefits, it is crucial to understand the fundamental behavior of localization. The squared position error bound (SPEB), based on the information inequality, is a fundamental limit on the localization performance. Although the SPEB can be applied to any type of network topology and any transmission technology, it is not intuitive as a design tool. In this paper, we provide a novel geometric interpretation of the localization information, enabling new insights into how and when cooperation is beneficial, and how location-aware networks should be designed.