What is UWB technology and how is it different from Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and NFC?

Ultra-wideband wireless technology (UWB)

UWB is a short-range wireless communication protocol that coexists with existing standards such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and NFC.

UWB is a short-range wireless communication standard, which is currently commonly used to track the location of objects. Device trackers are the most common application of this technology, and they can also be used for secure car unlocking and smart homes in the future.

UWB stands for "ultra-wideband”, which is a short-range wireless communication technology that can achieve extremely accurate location tracking. UWB-enabled devices can send and receive data over short distances at incredible speeds. In most cases, these "pulse-based" radio waves are used to measure position by accurately timing the time it takes for radio pulses to propagate between two different devices.

The main attraction of UWB lies in its extremely high position and direction accuracy. In fact, UWB tracking is very accurate, it can accurately locate the position of objects, only a few centimeters. Bluetooth, GPS and other tracking methods are also very accurate, but only one or two meters.

In the automotive industry, manufacturers such as BMW, Audi, Ford, and Hyundai claim that devices equipped with UWB may one day become secure digital keys. Although various forms of keyless entry technology already exist, the adoption of UWB will enable vehicles to measure the exact location of the remote control key in real time within a few centimeters. Compared with other wireless standards, this means higher security.

When you approach, your car will be able to recognize and automatically unlock, turn on the lights, and even activate pre-configured personalization settings.

As we mentioned before, UWB chips can be embedded in devices such as smart phones and smart watches. This makes the technology attractive for convenience reasons, because you don't have to carry a separate remote control key with you. Samsung also envisions a future where you can unlock your front door with a UWB-enabled device, or use its digital key platform for wearable devices.

UWB can accurately track equipped objects within a distance of 3.9 inches (10 cm)

Frequency: 3.1~10.6GHz

Speed: The linear speed of the speed of light (0.3m/nanosecond)

Range: 30-600 feet (10~200 meters)

Positioning accuracy: 0.1~0.5 meters (0.33?1.64 feet)

Extremely low susceptibility to interference

UWB works completely differently from other wireless data transmission methods. It is a technology based on pulse mode radio that can transmit data in the time domain with a spectral range of 3.1~10.6GHz. Traditional wireless transmission will change the power, frequency, and/or phase of the sine wave to encode data, rather than simple pulses.

Ultra-wideband technology for precise location tracking

The biggest advantage of this pulse-based transmission is that the time-of-flight information can be calculated from the received data. UWB can send up to 1 billion pulses per second, and each pulse can be measured based on the time it takes for data transmission from one device to another.

Once you know the time it takes for the signal to be transmitted between the two UWB devices and the speed of the data transmission, you can calculate the distance between the transmitter and the receiver. In the real world, this means that UWB eliminates the risk of relay attacks, which involve intercepting and rebroadcasting radio signals to maliciously access locked vehicles.

UWB technology uses time-of-flight technology to accurately measure distance, so as to achieve applications such as safe unlocking.

If you think it sounds a bit like sonar, at least on a very broad level, you are right. UWB technology measures the time it takes for radio waves to move between two objects, while sonar measures the time it takes for sound waves to propagate from their source, rebound from the object, and return. They are very different in many ways-first, sonar does not transmit data-but the basic ideas are essentially the same.

UWB uses a wide spectrum to quickly transmit data…

The pulse method also takes up more spectrum to work reliably, which is the reason for the ultra-wideband nomenclature. The width of a single frequency band is usually 500MHz, while the 4G LTE frequency band is 5 to 20MHz, and WiFi is 20MHz to 80MHz.Due to the wide spectrum, pulse data can be transmitted very quickly without loss of accuracy.

UWB can reach data rates of 4Mbps to 675Mbps or higher, depending on the frequency. This is much faster than NFC's 424Kbps and Bluetooth (standard) 2.1Mbps, but not as fast as the 2Gbps speed that Wi-Fi 6 can achieve.

It will not interfere with other wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth

Generally, wireless technology is limited to very narrow frequency bands to avoid mutual interference. UWB avoids this problem by operating at very low power levels, which are basically the noise floor of other wireless applications. In other words, the spectrum is very wide and can be easily detected, but the power is low enough not to interfere with other signals.

What are the application areas of UWB technology?

1. Safe keyless entry

Although this technology has not yet been adopted by the entire automotive industry, it is being used more every year. BMW uses UWB for keyless entry in some of its newer vehicles (such as iX). One of the biggest advantages of using ultra-wideband instead of other technologies for digital keys is that UWB is data-proof. Although criminals can use specialized tools to break into other digitally locked cars, they cannot do the same with cars locked using ultra-wideband technology.

2. Automation

Self-driving cars need reliable and ultra-fast sensors to ensure that they operate safer and reach their destinations more accurately. UWB technology can better help driverless cars “see” things around them. UWB can emit 1 billion pulses per second, and it is accurate to within a few inches.

At present, UWB has not been fully utilized in autonomous vehicles, but the prospects are very promising. UWB may be used to provide accurate, real-time information, transmitted back and forth between one connected car and another, fast enough in speed and accuracy, which greatly improves the achievability of truly driverless cars.

3. Manufacturing and logistics

It may not be the cooler application of UWB technology, but it is one of the most influential applications. Because UWB signals are very accurate and reliable, they can be used to track assets in factories, warehouses, and other large industrial sites. Think about it: when you can track the location of the product to centimeters, it is much easier to find the product in a large warehouse.

Logistics companies that ship hundreds of thousands of items every day can benefit greatly from UWB technology.

4. Asset tracking

Personal item trackers such as Apple AirTag use UWB technology to pinpoint the exact location of items. Boeing also uses UWB technology to track thousands of expensive tools, parts, and equipment in its factories.

These are examples of asset tracking.Using wireless tracking technology can help ensure that anything of value is lost again. Inventory and supply losses are expenses that really add up, and companies like Boeing have realized that they can use UWB tracking to reduce this situation.

5. Smart home

Imagine how nice it would be if every time you walked into the room, the light in your home would automatically trigger and you had a UWB mobile phone in your pocket. Another cool use of UWB is the ability to program your front door to automatically unlock when you are within 10 feet of the door–and these are just two of the dozens of ways UWB can make smart homes smarter.

Also, imagine you leave your phone somewhere at home. Instead of searching under every sofa cushion and praying that you didn't put your phone in the washing machine, it's better to simply ask your phone assistant where the phone is.With UWB, your digital assistant can tell you the exact location of your phone in a fraction of a second!

How is UWB used in smartphones?

Sports, keyless entry and driverless cars are the same thing, but what about smartphones? Today, Apple and Samsung use this technology to enable their flagship smartphones to make full use of location tracking through AirTag and Galaxy Smart Tag+ devices, respectively.Ultra-wideband is also used for file sharing through airdrops and nearby sharing.

However, other than that, UWB has not really been fully utilized in the smartphone market. Moreover, UWB is only used in a few smart phones, only the flagship products of Google, Apple and Samsung. Obviously, we still have a long way to go in terms of universal availability.

In the future, you can expect UWB to be used to help parents use safe apps to quickly find their children, and to help carpool drivers easily find passengers (no longer awkwardly call with online appointment drivers and ask “Where are you?").”), and promote new innovations in the field of augmented reality (AR). And, most importantly, smart phones equipped with UWB will become a direct connection between people and all other UWB-equipped devices (especially smart home devices).

Smart phones that support ultra-wideband

Although ultra-wideband technology has been around for several years, it is not as common as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. it is currently reserved for some of the most expensive equipment on the market today, simply because of its limited adoption. However, as the technology enters mainstream vehicles and tracking equipment, you can expect this situation to change.

Currently, the following is a list of smartphones and wearable devices that support UWB technology：

The entire Apple iPhone 15 series and all models since the iPhone 11 series. The iPhone SE series does not support ultra-wideband.

google Pixel Fold

google Pixel 6 Pro、7 Pro、8 Pro

Galaxy S21 Plus/Ultra、S22 Plus/Ultra、S23 Plus/Ultra、S24 Plus/Ultra

Galaxy Note 20 Ultra

Galaxy Z Fold 2、Z Fold 3、Z Fold 4、Z Fold 5

Apple Watch Series 6、Series 7、Series 8 and Series 9

We expect that smartphones from other manufacturers will provide support in upcoming flagship products, but mid-range and more affordable UWB smartphone options may have to wait a few years.

UWB vs NFC vs Bluetooth：How is it different?

1. Frequency band and range

Bluetooth operates in the 2.4GHz band, giving it a good range when used indoors. However, this frequency band is in the same spectrum as some WiFi signals, so it is vulnerable to interference. The wide spectrum of UWB is less susceptible to interference, so it was adopted earlier in industrial applications. In other words, its range is not as long as Bluetooth.

UWB provides higher positioning accuracy than Bluetooth and NFC, but it is not yet so affordable or common.

The operating frequency of NFC is 13.56MHz, and most implementations require a close physical distance for data transmission. This means that the transmission distance of UWB is between Bluetooth and NFC. If you need a remote application, please check GPS or Bluetooth. UWB and NFC can better meet the needs of short-range applications.

2. Cost-effectiveness: UWB is not as cheap as Bluetooth or NFC

Another advantage of the old technology is that the implementation costs of NFC and Bluetooth are very low, especially for low-power beacons or passive NFC tags.UWB is not cost-effective and requires an active power supply. Therefore, NFC will not realize contactless payment soon. Bluetooth's extensive traditional support, audio capabilities, and longer range mean that it can do things that UWB can't. For existing use cases, these two options may continue to be popular.

When is UWB the best choice?

When high-speed data transmission, high-precision and fast position detection, and/or low interference risk are key requirements, UWB came into being. As mentioned earlier, the technology also works well in scenarios that require additional security, such as wireless vehicle access. After all, ultra-wideband cannot directly replace any existing wireless technology on the market. On the contrary, it is the best choice for certain application areas.