UWB split remains at IEEE meeting

Proponents of the two technology schemes competing for ultrawideband standardization met this week in San Antonio, Texas, but there remains a solid split between the two camps, making it more likely that the standard could be delayed, or that a final standard could end up including both physical layer protocols.

In two separate votes among the meeting’s roughly 175 attendees, direct sequence technology was favored by slightly more than 50% of attendees, but either technology would need support from at least 75% of voters for it to be considered the clear choice for the standard, said Martin Rofheart, director of UWB operations at Freescale Semiconductor, a direct sequence proponent.

Some attendees reportedly felt that the close vote confirmed that standards developers remain at a stalemate that can’t be resolved. Rofheart, however, said the result of these votes "just makes it more clear that we need to look at a compromise."

He said several UWB companies believe the standard can progress with a physical layer specification "that includes both specs with no other coordination between them. Consumer electronics makers can choose."