Ultra-Wideband Technology: Standards, Characteristics, Applications

The boost in the number of mobile users and automated devices has led to urge of high speed communication with low power consumption devices. Another demand is the uninterrupted communication. This has led to the evolution of a technique referred as Ultra Wideband (UWB). UWB is capable of providing very high data rates and has very low power consumption. This technique relies on carrier less transmission of data in the form of pulses over a wide bandwidth and is mainly suited for short range applications. The short pulses add to the robust performance in the presence of multipath effects. Low spectral power density permits amalgamation of multiple signals and also interception. Due to numerous benefits, UWB finds it usefulness in many areas such as wireless communication, radar imaging, medical and indoor positioning. The paper aims to provide an overview of UWB standards, characteristics and applications.