Blind spatial signature estimation via time-varying user power loading and parallel factor analysis

In this paper, the problem of blind spatial signature estimation using the parallel factor (PARAFAC) analysis model is addressed in application to wireless communications. A time-varying user power loading in the uplink mode is proposed to make the model identifiable and to enable application of PARAFAC analysis. Then, identifiability issues are studied in detail and closed-form expressions for the corresponding modified Crame´r-Rao bound (CRB) are obtained. Furthermore, two blind spatial signature estimation algorithms are developed. The first technique is based on the PARAFAC fitting trilinear alternating least squares (TALS) regression procedure, whereas the second one makes use of the joint approximate diagonalization algorithm. These techniques do not require any knowledge of the propagation channel and/or sensor array manifold and are applicable to a more general class of scenarios than earlier approaches to blind spatial signature estimation.