The absence of highly accurate indoor location technologies is currently hindering the smart home from becoming truly interconnected and fully automated [1] . Ultra-wideband (or UWB) has the potential to solve this problem – it is a fast, secure, and low power radio technology used to determine location with precise accuracy. UWB is not a new technology (Figure 1): it was originally used for military radar applications but for various reasons, such as power restrictions, it was unable to succeed. However, it has recently re-emerged and since 2019, UWB has evolved and expanded into mainstream consumer technology. With the help of organisations like the UWB Alliance and the FiRa Consortium, who are dedicated to the promotion and growth of the technology, it has been predicted that by 2025 there will be over one billion annual device shipments of UWB technology [1] . Due to its high-accuracy, reliability, and robustness, UWB can offer a
much more seamless, automated and personalised experience within the smart home which will be the focus for the remainder of this article.
Written by: Paige West, Editor at Electronic Specifier
How UWB works
One key difference between conventional radio transmissions
and UWB is the nature of information transmission.
Conventional systems transmit information by varying several elements, including the phase of a sinusoidal wave, power levels, and frequency. UWB-based transmissions, on the other hand, generate radio energy at specific time intervals, occupy large bandwidths, and enable time modulation or pulse position. UWB can also encode pulse polarity and amplitude or use orthogonal pulses to transmit information. Industry leaders are increasingly incorporating this technology into several devices for a wide range of applications, including security, patient monitoring, entertainment, and general smart
UWB History
1960-1990s
2000s
2007
2020
Restricted to Military Radar G. Marconi’s first experiments with UWB on spark-gap transmitters in transatlantic radio communication and its use for military radar applications
Orthogonal Frequency- Divinsion Multiplexing (OFDM) Adapted for use as an OFDM technology and standardised in IEEE.802: 15.3 as an ultra-high data rate transfer method
Ranging and Low Power Consumption
Secure Fine Ranging
Specified in IEEE 802.15.4z and in standardisation process by FiRa Consortium
Figure 1: The history of UWB. Credit: ABI Research
Specified in IEEE 802.15.4a UWB has been resurrected as an impulse radio technology used for ranging
we get technical
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