METHOD FOR IMPROVING THE SETTLING TIME OF A TRANSVERSAL FILTER ADAPTIVE ECHO CANCELLER

The method disclosed accomplishes a reduction in the initial "distance" between the tap gain vector, of a transversal filter adaptive echo canceller, and its optimum value. Tap gain magnitudes, related to the statistical distribution of echo path impulse response envelopes, are stored. The gains associated with each tap component are initially set to zero and adaptation then proceeds for a period of time sufficient to determine the polarity of each tap component. The determined polarities of each tap component are respectively assigned to the stored tap gain magnitudes and the tap components are set in accordance with the same. Convergence thence proceeds naturally from this new setting of the gain vector.