A technique for intra-piconet location determination and tomography is described. This technique uses received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values in conjunction with transmitted power levels to determine the relative location of each device within a small network employing frequency hopped spread spectrum transmission. In addition to the location determination properties of the invention, the geometry of the devices in the network, as well as the path loss information between pairs of devices, may be used to infer the location of absorbers and reflectors within the piconet. This absorption and reflection information may be used in creating the piconet tomography. The approach described in this specification may be applied in conjunction with the Bluetooth wireless Personal Area Network (PAN) specification to determine device locations, mitigate the effects of multi-path, and perform indoor location and security functions, and other application functions requiring cost-effective location determination.