UWB Briefs

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Originally published at Internet.com

At CeBIT in Germany this week, DisplayLink plans to publicly show off its wireless connection between a computer and monitor. It requires a Windows computer to be running Virtual Graphics Card (VGC) software, and the DisplayLink chip with its Hardware Rendering Engine to be on the display end. Then it's just a matter of connecting the two, either by a USB 2.0 cable, by Wireless USB, or even by Wi-Fi. The first display to use the technology is Samsung's 19-inch 940UX display - it doesn't even have a VGA or DVI port, just USB. In fact, it has a four-port USB hub built in, so you can add more monitors. No word on who, if any, vendors plan on using DisplayLink chips with Wireless USB.

March 9, 2007

The PMA 2007 show had some ultrawideband providers visiting this week. Chipmaker Alereon says it's teaming with manufacturers to build Wireless USB solutions into digital cameras. Artimi is there saying the same, letting visitors take high-res photos and sending them using Wireless USB to a photo printer as a demo. They say digital cameras with embedded Wireless USB should be out in the first half of 2008.

March 1, 2007

WiQuest Communications says the drivers for its ultrawideband chip/software combo are the first supporting Certified Wireless USB to earn the Microsoft's Windows Hardware Quality Lab (WHQL) certification. This covers use in both Windows XP and Vista operating systems, and in both 32- and 64-bit incarnations on single and dual-core systems. WiQuest also has FCC approval for inclusion of its chips in a future Toshiba notebook. The chips (WQST100) have WiMedia PHY registration - Wireless USB is based on UWB technology as defined by the WiMedia Alliance.

LucidPort Technologies' L800 is a Certified Wireless USB controller design supporting both wired and wireless USB connections, both using the same API (Application Programming Interface). The reference design from the fabless chip maker will be available in April.

February 9, 2007

Semiconductor designer Artimi will be showing off Bluetooth over Ultrawideband this month at the 3GSM World Congress in Spain. Visitors to the Artimi booth can provide their own images from camera phones for Artimi to show transferring from laptop to laptop with the enhanced UWB-for-Bluetooth speeds, which are expected to hit 480 Mbps. The WiMedia Alliance standard for UWB is the Bluetooth Special Interest Group's choice for the next generation of the technology. It's also used for Certified Wireless USB, which Artimi will also be demoing using a Wireless USB camera. Artimi's A-150 WiMedia-based UWB MAC is available now for testing.

Also at 3GSM, chipmaker Wisair plans to show off a Nokia N series camera phone utilizing Wireless USB from the Wisair 542 chip. Wisair will be part of the WiMedia Alliance's area at the show.

January 11, 2007

Wireless USB based on Wi-Fi, not ultrawideband? Why not. Icron Technologies says its WiRanger Cable Free USB 2.0 is the first wireless USB 2.0 hub based on 802.11g. It will have four ports and dongles to connect to legacy USB ports on printers, cameras, hard drives, etc. It should be available in the spring. Note that it's not Certified Wireless USB, as the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) says that has to come from vendors supporting UWB tech from a WiMedia Alliance company. But Icron says 802.11g gives better range (30 meters) as well as an upgrade path to using 11n for the same purpose.

Alereon says that Intel's Host Wire Adapter (HWA) Reference Dessign - using an Alereon AL4000 WiMedia PHY and an Intel MAC, and made by Gemtek - has passed muster with the FCC. This dongle is made for OEM/ODM companies looking for a fast way to market with wUSB, and is available now. Alereon is also working with software company Stonestreet One to make embedded wUSB to go in devices supporting Microsoft Windows Mobile/Windows CE. That means coupling the AL4000 with Alereon's AL4300 MAC/baseband and Stonestreet One's UltraSuite software and drivers on units supporting compact flash and DSIO interfaces.

Staccato Communications says its new Wafer Chip Scale Package (WCSP) based on Staccato's Ripcord chip is the smallest Certified wUSB around, measuring only 7.5 mm square. It should be sampling with customers later in the first quarter of '07.

Y-E Data of Japan will use Wisair UWB/Wireless USB chips to bring a new wUSB hub and PCI Express mini card for laptops to market. Y-E had the first hub on the market last year in Japan, also using Wisair chips.

Artimi says it has created a format for a module to be integrated in digital still cameras, giving them instant wUSB connections - no dongle necessary - without camera makers or designers needing to re-architect the insides. They showed it this week at CES in the WiMedia TechZone booth, but haven't announced any customers yet. They estimate it can handle a download of 1 GB of photos in about 30 seconds.

Not to be outdone by DisplayLink, WiQuest used CES to show a new Wireless Docking Station that would bring not only wUSB connections but also wireless video transmission. They call it WiDV, or Wireless Digital Video. They say a laptop with WiDV embedded (via PCI Express mini card) that comes within range of a WiDV docking station will get instant access to all peripherals, including the monitor. The dock has four USB ports, one wUSB association "port," Ethernet and standard audio.

January 3, 2007

Gefen, which wanted to release Wireless USB products last year but got delayed when its chip supplier (Freescale) pulled out of the UWB biz, now plans to show such products at CES next week. The Wireless USB Extender will have four ports, and will connect to peripherals with a Wireless USB dongle. The Extender should start selling this month for $249 (but Belkin said the same thing about its Wireless USB hub for December, which is also now pushed back to this month as well). Gefen is now using chips from Wisair, just like Belkin. Later this year, Gefen intends to sell wireless video cables for VGA, component and HDMI connections, probably using tech from other chipmakers like Tzero Technologies. No more cables from the DVD player to the TV? Sounds good - though the HDMI extender, for example, will cost about $500.

Wisair continues to win customers for its UWB/Certified USB chips. MiTAC International will use the Wisair542 chipset to create a Wireless USB hub with dual antennas and a PCI Express Mini card dongle to be shown at CES next week. Wisair itself is shipping new reference designs for the hub and PCIe Mini card to other customers.

Before Xmas, Siemens Home and Office Communication Devices and Kiyon said they're jointly developing UWB mesh solutions for home networking of everything from video to audio to games. Kiyon makes multi-hop mesh routing software (Multi-channel TDMA)

2005 UWB Briefs

December 23, 2005

Earlier this week, three chip-making companies that are part of the WiMedia Alliance said they're already working on interoperability tests. Alereon, Staccato Communications and Wisair have all been working with TDK Test Services of pre-production chips to make sure they work under all the mandatory data-rates set forth by the Alliance in the Ecma-368 High Rate Ultrawideband PHY and MAC standard announced this month. The three companies say this is a big step toward plans for final product certification testing in 2006.

December 16, 2005

Media processor company Sigma Designs is buying out Blue7 Communications of San Jose, California, which makes UWB semiconductors, for $14 million. Blue7 has been working on the Windeo all-CMOS chip with baseband and MAC integrated with the RF front end. The chip should go into production late in 2006.

November 11, 2005

Ultrawideband used for broadband? Not just broadband, but how about broadband over gas pipe lines? That's the word from a story on News.com that says Nethercomm of San Diego is using UWB to create a technology to provide high-speed IP services over natural-gas pipes. Some call it outrageous, others think it could save lots of money for broadband providers.

November 10, 2005

Testing equipment provider Tektronix says its new oscilloscope software applications is for the Tektronics TDS6000C is for "validating all types of UWB devices." Users of the TDS6000C can get the software, dubbed TDSUWB, for free. It is also available with extensions for the WiMedia Alliance's UWB Common radio Platform (TDWUWB+WiMedia). The USB-IF, which is working with WiMedia, hopes the new oscilloscope software will speed up development of Certified Wireless USB products based on the WiMedia platform.

October 25, 2005

Icron Technologies Corporation is the latest company to join the UWB Forum as a contributing member. They make the ExtremeUSB technology that works with USB 2.0 and 1.1, using the ports to make any product a wireless product. The UWB Forum, lead by Freescale Semiconductor, wants to make a USB products wireless but doesn't support the Certified Wireless USB being pushed by the other UWB camp, the WiMedia Alliance. Icron and UWB Forum plan to provide wireless that plugs into USB ports without requiring any extra drivers.

September 30, 2005

Silicon designer FOCUS Enhancements says it has taken delivery of its first chips for 880 Mbps ultrawideband, the first chip in the two-part Talaria solution. The second chip should be ready for delivery in December, with evaluation kits for OEMs just before the end of 2005. Talaria is compatible with WiMedia MB-OFDM, but uses FOCUS' DSS-OFDM modulation techniques. User-selectable speeds include 110, 440, 660 and 880 Mbps.

September 27, 2005

Stonestreet One says it is now shipping (in alpha stage) UWB solutions for use in Windows XP, called UltraSuite. This suite of drivers supports Wireless USB (HWA and DWA) and WiNet for Windows Desktop and Mobility. Eventually, it will be available for other operating systems, and later will have support for StoneStreet's WiCenter user interface product for managing WLANs.

Fujitsu and Staccato Communications will be jointly marketing Staccato's Ripcord UWB System-in-Package products, which will be Wireless USB certified. Fujitsu can sell the entire product line, from the chips to the SDK, and it will also license the Staccato Media Access Controller (MAC) for use in other Wireless USB products, such as the Fujitsu products found in many digital cameras.

The Synopsys DesignWare WiUSB device controller core for Certified Wireless USB won't be out until 2006, but early adopters are already trying it out. Interoperability testing is underway with Realtek Semiconductor's single-chip WiMedia UWB PHY and Alereon's WiMedia PHY, both of which should be available before the end of this year. (Alereon's PHY is also part of testing Microsoft is doing with Synopsys on its own Wireless USB driver.) DesignWare includes a USB Platform Adaptation Layer and the WiMedia UWB MAC layer.

September 23, 2005

Wisair showed off an ultrawideband "detect and avoid" technology at the CEPT Electronic Communications Committee meeting in Copenhagen this week that would let UWB coexist with WiMax and 3G/4G technologies without interfering. It requires that UWB devices use narrowband signal detection to find other networks in the 3.1-4.2 GHz frequency range, both before and during UWB use. If there is another network running in that band, the UWB emission level is reduced. Wisair has a white paper available on the topic.

September 12, 2005

Last week, silex technology of Japan said it was making a UWB miniPCI module using Freescale Semiconductor's DS-UWB XS110 chip. The module will be used in silex's line of PC peripherals in the United States as well as for OEMs looking to integrate UWB. It can provide a 110Mbps data rate at a range of 20 meters.

WiMedia member Alereon has introduced its 4400-EVB UWB physical layer evaluation board, designed to make it faster for developers using the Peripheral Development Kit for Certified Wireless USB from Intel. The 4400-EVB works at speeds up to 480Mbps.

August 23, 2005

Research firm West Technology Research Solutions says that when Freescale Semiconductor ships its DS-UWB chips in the third quarter of this year, it will spur "significant economic growth" in ultrawideband circles. They expect DS-UWB components to have a