Signal analysis method and system

Claim 1

A SYSTEM FOR DETECTING SIGNALS PROPAGATED THROUGH AN ENERGY PROPAGATING MEDIUM FROM A LOCALIZED SOUND SIGNAL SOURCE IN THE MEDIUM, COMPRISING A TRANSDUCER FOR PRODUCING AN OUTPUT RESPONSIVE TO PROPERTIES OF ACOUSTIC WAVES PROPAGATED THROUGH THE MEDIUM WHICH VARY AS A FUNCTION OF BACKGROUND NOISE AND SIGNALS GENERATED BY THE SOUND SOURCE, DETECTOR MEANS RESPONSIVE TO OCCURRENCES OF SELECTED HIGH RATE-OF-CHANGE WAVEFORM SEGMENTS IN THE TRANSDUCER OUTPUT REPRESENTING SIGNALS IN A SELECTED FREQUENCY BAND PROPAGATED THROUGH THE MEDIUM AND COMPONENTS OF BACKGROUND NOISE FOR PRODUCING DETECTOR OUTPUTS DENOTING OCCURRENCE OF SAID WAVEFORM SEGMENTS, MEANS FOR SENSING THE DENSITY OF SAID DETECTOR OUTPUTS, AND MEANS RESPONSIVE TO DENSITIES OF SAID DETECTOR OUTPUTS GREATER THAN DENSITIES ATTRIBUTABLE PREDOMINANTLY TO NONGAUSSIAN COMPONENTS OF THE BACKGROUND NOISE FOR PRODUCING DISTINCTIVE OUTPUT INDICATIONS OF THE OCCURRENCE OF THE GREATER DENSITIES.