Abstract: A method for estimation of a transmission channel and for transmission and reception of digital signals over the channel comprises the steps of transmission of data sequences intercalated with probe sequences, calculation in reception of a channel characteristics estimation for probe sequences received and interpolation of the channel estimation for the data sequences. After obtaining the interpolated estimation the transmission and reception method comprises the additional phase of recognition of received information data by equalizing the data sequences with the interpolation result. An apparatus employing the method has at one end of the channel a device (12) for intercalation of probe sequences between data sequences and at the other channel end a discriminator (16) which separates the probed and data sequences. An estimator (17) estimates the channel for the probe sequences and an interpolator (18) produces the desired interpolated estimation.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a receiver for high-speed numerical transmissions through Rayleigh channels noisy and dispersive in time and frequency in which an accurate estimate of the channel response is combined in an optimal manner with the received data sequence detection procedure. Specifically the a posteriori probability of the Markov chain of the states of the channel with intersymbolic interference are calculated recursively from the data received and from the updated channel estimate. The a posteriori probabilities calculated are used in turn by a Kalman estimator to record the channel variations. On the basis of the sequence of the calculated a posteriori probabilities the detection is then calculated symbol by symbol with the highest a posteriori probability having a small decision delay.