Adaptive near real-time RFI mitigation using Karhunen–Loève transform

This paper presents a near real-time implementation of the Karhunen–Loève Transform (KLT) for Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) mitigation in microwave radiometry. KLT is a powerful, data-adaptive technique capable of adjusting to various signal types by estimating the covariance matrix of the inco...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Díez García, Raúl, Camps Carmona, Adriano José|||0000-0002-9514-4992
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)
Repositorio:UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/444419
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2117/444419
https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rs17152578
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:RFI
Mitigation
KLT
Microwave radiometry
PCA
Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Enginyeria de la telecomunicació::Radiocomunicació i exploració electromagnètica
Descripción
Sumario:This paper presents a near real-time implementation of the Karhunen–Loève Transform (KLT) for Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) mitigation in microwave radiometry. KLT is a powerful, data-adaptive technique capable of adjusting to various signal types by estimating the covariance matrix of the incoming signal and segmenting its eigenvectors to form an effective RFI basis. In this paper, the KLT is evaluated with real signals in laboratory conditions, aiming to characterize its performance in realistic conditions. To that effect, the dual Rx/Tx capability of a Pluto SDR is used to generate and capture RFI. The main mitigation metrics are computed for the KLT and other commonly used mitigation methods. In addition, while previous studies have shown the effectiveness of offline processing of recorded I/Q data, real-time mitigation is often necessary. Given the computational cost of eigendecomposition, this work introduces a low-complexity solution using the “economy covariance” approach alongside asynchronous covariance decomposition. The proposed implementation, realized within the GNU Radio framework, demonstrates the practical feasibility of real-time KLT-based mitigation and underscores its potential for improving signal integrity in digital radiometers operating under dynamic RFI conditions.