Joint Effort Develops T&M Capabilities for UWB Technologies
Test-and-measurement equipment expert Rohde & Schwarz and UWB technology expert Decawave teamed up to develop T&M capabilities for production-line testing of ultra-wideband (UWB) functions in chipsets and complete devices. As part of the cooperative effort, Decawave provided knowledge of the required test strategy and test methods, as well as the Decawave DW3000 as a test device. Rohde & Schwarz added UWB test capabilities to its R&S CMP200 radio communication tester, making it the only test platform on the market able to provide R&D and production RF tests for both 5G FR2 and UWB functions.
UWB technology, based on the IEEE 802.15.4a and 802.15.4z standards, enables centimeter-accurate location measurements at distances up to 75 meters. UWB also includes secure data communication at rates up to 27 Mb/s, with very low power requirements. UWB is an ideal candidate for implementing low-latency, highly accurate, reliable, and secure local-area location services. UWB opens new doors in the fields of mobile communication, automotive, IoT, and Industry 4.0 applications. The very wide bandwidth and very low power density make it possible for UWB signals to share spectrum with other narrowband and wideband systems without causing interference.
The 802.15.4a/z standards include several frequency bands; Decawave, as a founding member of the UWB Alliance, already supplies products using frequencies from 3.5 to 6.5 GHz. However, interest is now concentrating on the high band, with channels defined between 5.8 and 10.6 GHz, supporting higher power transmission that leads to longer range. The DW3000 chipset will operate using UWB channels 5 and 9 in the high band, with a bandwidth of 500 MHz.
Anton Messmer, Vice President Mobile Radio Testers at Rohde & Schwarz, said, “As OEM and ODM customers get ready to deploy their UWB products, they expect test equipment to be ready and capable to meet their manufacturing needs.”
Jeff Clancy, Vice President of Engineering at Decawave, said, “This joint cooperation enables our customers to efficiently manufacture high-volume products with reduced time-to-market. We are happy to work together with Rohde & Schwarz by enabling their solutions to meet the testing requirements of the UWB ecosystems.”
The R&S CMP200 radio communication tester is designed to meet RF test requirements for devices operating from 6 to 20 GHz in standalone mode, and for all essential 5G FR2 bands including 28 GHz and 39 GHz when used with the R&S CMPHEAD30 remote radio head. This solution from Rohde & Schwarz is the only test instrument available with the necessary specification to support R&D and production test for UWB and 5G FR2 technologies in a single device.
For further information on the R&S CMP200 test platform, go to www.rohde-schwarz.com/product/cmp200. For further information on Decawave, go to www.decawave.com.