Ultra Wide Band was brought to the forefront by Apple’s AirTags: let’s see what it is and what are the main applications.
Large amounts of data over short distances: this is the most important advantage of Ultra Wide Band or UWB over previous generation transmission technologies such as the famous Bluetooth, a quality that makes UWB a feature on which manufacturers are already betting a lot for the next few years of development.
To put the spotlight on UWB technology was, as it often happens, an Apple product. The recent AirTag object tracker brought Ultra Wide Band, which is a recent technology but not a very recent one, to the lips of many. Apple’s AirTags rely on Bluetooth and UWB to assist the user when searching for a lost item, with the former making AirTag talk to slightly older products, and the latter being used with iPhones 11 and later to make the search for a lost item more accurate and therefore faster via Ultra Wide Band technology. But what is UWB and why is everyone talking about it?
What is the Ultra Wide Band
The Ultra Wide Band, also known by the acronym UWB, is a technology for the wireless transmission of data and information, then over the air. It uses a wide band of frequencies, regulated and not, to transmit data packets at short range: the maximum transmission distance is about 70 meters, with the advantage that a very low amount of electricity is used (not even a milliwatt).
UWB suffers much less than Bluetooth the presence of walls or obstacles along the “crossing” of the signal, a feature that makes it particularly suitable and to be used inside closed places such as homes, offices or dispersive as shopping centers. Mentioning Bluetooth, it’s worth pointing out the differences between the “old” – Bluetooth – and the new – UWB: the former has a maximum range of about 10 meters, the latter, as mentioned, goes up to 70 meters; in addition, UWB can count on a much higher bandwidth, and this in simple terms translates into the fact that compared to Bluetooth can carry large amounts of information at the same time.
Think about it, the latest Ultra Wide Band evolutions allow you to touch transmission speeds close to Gigabit, which is about the same as a good home fiber connection. But the feature that perhaps more than any other makes it suitable in the localization of objects is a precise measurement of the so-called transit time of information, i.e. the ability to know what is the distance between the two objects in communication with a gap measurable in centimeters if not, even, in millimeters.
Finally, another advantage, the reduced amount of energy used to transfer data. As said, we are well below the milliwatt, which gives to UWB an intrinsic security: the signal, being at very low power, is easily confused with the numerous electromagnetic emissions that travel in the air, resulting almost impossible to intercept for an ill-intentioned person.
Who uses UWB
That UWB is a very versatile technology is under everyone’s eyes. The possibilities of use are therefore considerable and the future is undoubtedly of the Ultra Wide Band, which could soon relegate Bluetooth to a marginal role. It could soon replace it, for example in IT, because of the obvious advantages in terms of range, distance and data, low power consumption and low sensitivity to interference.
In these initial phases of its diffusion, however, UWB is mainly used in the short-range tracking of objects. As mentioned in the beginning, Apple uses it to connect iPhone and AirTag, while competitors are preparing to use UWB in a massive way and for the most diverse uses. In short, we are only at the beginning of an adventure that promises to be long and full of applications.