The relationship between bandwidth and performance for a spread spectrum acoustic ranging system

Ranging systems that use spread spectrum are in common use today. Perhaps the most pervasive system is GPS. However, there are some limitations for GPS because such a system relies on a high frequency signal. One of the obvious problems is that the receiver must have an unobstructed view of the sky. There are situation in which one cannot use GPS, such as in an orchard or indoors. The other problem is that the bandwidth is not available in RF systems. This paper suggests ranging can be achieved by applying the spread spectrum technique to the medium of air rather than using an electromagnetic signal. It is shown that a large bandwidth is beneficial to ranging and that, with sound, a large bandwidth is available. With a huge bandwidth, it is easier to design an accurate, reliable ranging system. This paper discusses the effect that this bandwidth would have in terms of reliability and accuracy.