Noise Analysis of UWB Numerical Differentiation-Based ToA Estimators in Multipath Environments

Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technology is widely used in positioning systems due to its high time resolution and robustness against multipath interference. However, in practical environments with severe multipath interference and varying signal-to-noise ratios (SNR), achieving accurate Time of Arrival (ToA) estimation remains a challenge. This paper investigates the noise characteristics of a numerical differentiation-based ToA estimator compared to the conventional correlation-based method. The performance of both methods is analyzed under Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN) and multipath environments. Simulations are conducted to evaluate the impact of SNR variations and the number of multipath components on the estimation accuracy. The results provide insights into the robustness and limitations of numerical differentiation-based ToA estimation in noisy environments.