ECE
Abstract
Ultra-Wideband (UMB) technology is loosely defined as any wireless transmission scheme that occupies a bandwidth of more than 25% of a center frequency, or more than 1.5GHz. The Federal Communications Commission is currently working on setting emissions limits that would allow UWB communication systems to be deployed on an unlicensed basis following the Part 15.209 rules for radiated emissions of intentional radiators, the same rules governing the radiated emissions from home computers, for example. This rule change would allow UWB-enabled devices to overlay existing narrowband systems, which is currently not allowed, and result in a much more efficient use of the available spectrum.A breakdown, of how this paper is organized: The first section looks at UWB technology from the high-level perspective of how this technology compares with other current and future wireless alternatives. Next, we describe the current state of the regulatory process, where UWB transmissions are under consideration for being made legal on an unlicensed basis. Then, some implementation advantages of UMB systems are discussed that distinguish UWB transceiver architectures from more conventional “narrowband” systems. After this, we illustrate the throughput vs. distance characteristics for an example UWB system. Finally, we conclude with a summary of the benefits of UWB and suggest some future challenges that are currently being investigated.
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