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We consider the problem of localization and distance estimation between a pair of wireless nodes in a multipath propagation environment, but not the usual way of processing a channel measurement between them. We propose a novel paradigm which compares the two nodes' ultra-wideband (UWB) channels to other nodes, called observers. The main idea is that the dissimilarity between the channel impulse responses (CIRs) increases with d and allows for an estimate d. Our approach relies on extracting common multipath components (MPCs) from the CIRs. This is realistic in indoor or urban scenarios and if d is considerably smaller than the distances to the observers.We present distance estimators which utilize the rich location information contained in MPC delay differences. Likewise, we present estimators for the relative position vector which process both MPC delays and MPC directions. We do so for various important cases: with and without time synchronization, delay measurement errors, and knowledge of the MPC association between the two CIRs. The estimators exhibit great technological advantages: they do not require line-of-sight conditions or knowledge about the observer locations or the environment.We study the estimation accuracy with a numerical evaluation based on random sampling and, additionally, with an experimental evaluation based on measurements in an indoor environment. The proposal shows the potential for great accuracy in theory and practice. We describe how the paradigm could be incorporated into established cooperative localization frameworks to provide them with novel inter-and intra-node measurements for spatiotemporal tracking. This could enable low-cost localization of wireless users or networks in dynamic multipath settings.

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