Ultra-Wideband Radio

Abstract

The application of ultra-wideband (UWB) technology to low-cost short-range communications presents unique challenges to the communications engineer. The impact of the US FCC's regulations and the characteristics of the low-power UWB propagation channels are explored, and their effects on UWB hardware design are illustrated. This tutorial introduction includes references to more detailed explorations of the subject

Wireless Networks in the Process Industry: Opportunities for Ultra Wideband Applications

“…Capacity calculations for AWGN-UWB channels support this assessment [2]. Porcino and Hirt [11] conclude that "UWB-RT has the potential to become a viable and competitive wireless technology for short-range high-rate WPANs 2 as well as lower-rate and low-power-consuming low-cost devices and networks, with the capacity to support a truly pervasive user-centric and thus personal wireless world".…”

“…In IR-UWB, very short pulses are sent over the channel, and the information is modulated on the delay and/or the amplitude of these pulses. In MB-UWB, on 2 WPAN is Wireless Personal Area Network (IEEE 802.15.3) the other hand, the spectrum is divided in a number of smaller bands; where in each subband the conventional Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation scheme is adopted. IR-UWB is easier to implement than MB-UWB.…”

“…UWB engineering efforts started already in the end of the 1970s but were recently boosted because the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) allowed UWB-enabled devices to overlay existing narrowband systems [2,3]. A growing interest within the wireless industry as well as within academic and other research institutes in the US and in Europe can be noticed [1].…”

“…The regulation by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the European Commission (EC) is still in progress but nevertheless the question 'which will be the so-called "killer" application' has presented itself [e.g. 2]. We argue to follow a design approach instead of waiting on accidentally discovered killer applications and started a research program to design UWB applications.…”

A Flexible Low Power Subsampling UWB Receiver Based on Line Spectrum Estimation Methods

“…The optimum receiver is based on matched filtering (correlation) with the transmitted pulse followed by a RAKE structure capturing the multipath diversity of the channel. However the transmitted pulse is distorted by the transceiver antennas and the channel [2]. As this pulse distortion can vary among the multipaths, the RAKE receiver can not achieve the optimal performance.…”