ToA vs. TDoA: Understanding the Differences in Signal Timing Measurement

ToA (Time of Arrival) and TDoA (Time Difference of Arrival) are both methods used to measure signal arrival times, but they differ in their implementation.

ToA is a direct method that measures the time difference between the signal's transmission and reception. It typically requires synchronized clocks at the transmitter and receiver to accurately measure the time difference. ToA offers high precision but presents challenges in managing synchronized clocks for large-scale deployments.

In contrast, TDoA relies on measuring the time difference between a signal's arrival at multiple receivers to determine its location. By using multiple receivers to measure the time differences, triangulation principles can be applied to calculate the signal source's position. TDoA's advantage lies in its suitability for large-scale systems as it doesn't require clock synchronization, but its accuracy can be affected by signal propagation variations.