Estimating deformations of stationary processes

Abstract

This paper studies classes of nonstationary processes, such as warped processes and frequency-modulated processes, that result from the deformation of stationary processes. Estimating deformations can often provide important information about an underlying physical phenomenon. A computational harmonic analysis viewpoint shows that the deformed autocovariance satisfies a transport equation at small scales, with a velocity proportional to a deformation gradient. We derive an estimator of the deformation from a single realization of the deformed process, with a proof of consistency under appropriate assumptions.