Ultra-wideband location applications envisioned or already created support emergency services, asset tracking, and manufacturing inventory management.
The market for ultra-wideband (UWB) devices looks very strong indeed. Potential location applications already envisioned or being created for UWB include emergency services, asset tracking, and manufacturing inventory management.
It sounds too good to be true: A technology that can see through walls, transfer gigabytes of data in seconds, utilize signals that go undetected because of their low frequency (and are thus secure), and provide a viable real-time location system (RTLS) capability with a positioning accuracy in the 15- to 30-centimeter range, in three dimensions.
Oh, and by the way, the signals travel seamlessly through concrete, rock, and metal obstacles. Welcome to the world of UWB technology.
First, the Basics
UWB is a high bandwidth, short range, ultra-low-power wireless technology. Current products average data transfer rates of 480 to 500 Mbps (millions of bits per second), but developers are pushing the limits toward the gigabyte range as you read this. For portable applications, the high bandwidth and low-power consumption could bring a windfall of new features and applications for manufacturers of cell phones, handhelds, laptops, and personal navigation devices.
UWB signals also have the ability to penetrate through dense structures, similar to ground-penetrating radar, and create images of what’s on the other side — a great tool for firefighters looking for people trapped in a smoke-filled building. Not to mention the fact that firefighters themselves can be located and tracked in three dimensions within areas where GPS does not perform well.
A great number of potential location applications are already envisioned or being created for UWB, including:
- emergency services
- asset tracking
- search and rescue
- manufacturing inventory management
- medical patient monitoring.
The mass-market desire for sub-meter positioning systems is heating up as consumers of location systems realize that GNSS lacks the ability to really pinpoint a precise dot on the map without differential GPS or some other supplemental technology. Assisted GPS has certainly improved accuracies and time to first fix for many location devices, but UWB holds the promise of being able to keep track of tens of thousands of location tags, each updating once a second with minimal effort, thanks to the high bandwidth inherent in this wireless technology.
One firm getting into the fray and announcing indoor positioning systems based on UWB is Thales, the company that used to own Magellan. Thales’ new indoor positioning system is in fact designed for firefighters, among others. In a recent presentation, the company outlined potential applications for the system in terms of accuracy needed, and it definitely indicates a healthy market for sub-meter positioning.
Indoor Positioning
According to a January 2007 Frost & Sullivan report, “Existing technologies such as Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi have limitations in terms of power consumption efficiency, data rates, quality and security. UWB, however, allows end-users instantaneous access to a broad spectrum of information.”
Frost analyst Venkat Malleypula says that “multiple companies are developing UWB technologies to specifically address the need of various applications such as precision geo-positioning systems, collision and obstacle avoidance radars, intelligent transportation systems, asset tracking, medical imaging, and wireless communications.”
Both radio frequency identification (RFID) and RTLS have attracted significant venture capital interest. More than $433 million has been invested in RFID and RTLS firms in the past 18 months, according to industry trade publication RFID Update. Market analyst In-Stat forecasts that UWB sales will surpass the current Wi-Fi sales volume of about $300 million this year. Communications applications with UWB will hit the market in 2010, and in 2011 and more than 400 million UWB-enabled devices will ship. If you’re interested in investing in a RFID/RTLS company, however, you’re out of luck. They are all private at this point — but that won’t last long, I’m sure.
Although the technology case for UWB is strong, the industry has struggled for years to establish an agreed-on standard. IEEE recently standardized upon IEEE 802.15.3a and UWB for low-speed data transfer, which has been further standardized in IEEE 802.15.4a. It’s been a long road for development companies, as the Federal Communications Commission was initially hesitant to authorize use of UWB without a licensing process. Another concern, which has been addressed in many white papers, is UWB interference with GPS signal processing.
In spite of all this, the technology has moved ahead at a surprising clip, as evidenced by some flat-panel TV manufacturers, which are already incorporating UWB technology to facilitate future high-speed downloads of online digital media. In fact, companies such as UbiSense, Multi-Spectral Solutions, Mitsubishi Electronic Corp., Thales, Time Domain, and Aether Wire & Location Inc. are all exploring UWB applications.
My first experience with UWB came in a meeting in Silicon Valley in 1992 with several researchers that were making a case for using UWB for location tracking.
Although the technology was only in its initial stages of development back then, their drive and enthusiasm was evident. I guess they were right after all. It’s here, and soon it will provide a new alternative to both indoor location and high-speed data transfer to a device near you. As much as we love our GPS, it’s the accurate location that we need. The U.S. Department of Commerce made a statement back in the 1990s that “location accuracy is becoming addictive to its users.” How true.
