DFT-based frequency estimation under harmonic interference

In this paper we address the accurate estimation of the frequency of sinusoids of natural signals such as singing, voice or music. These signals are intrinsicly harmonic and are normally contaminated by noise. Taking the Crame¿r-Rao Lower Bound for unbiased frequency estimators as a reference, we compare the performance of several DFT-based frequency estimators that are non-iterative and that use the rectangular window or the Hanning window. Tests conditions simulate harmonic interference and two new ArcTan-based frequency estimators are also included in the tests. Conclusions are presented on the relative performance of the different frequency estimators as a function of the SNR.