The best-known use of UWB today is probably connected with smart phones. Those of you who own an iPhone 11 or later have a UWB module in your phone that can communicate with other UWB radios through a standard protocol known as IEEE 802.15.4z.

Ultra-Wideband sensing is basically a radar that transmits electromagnetic pulses and listens for reflected echoes in much the same way as a traditional radar does. We can sense all objects inside a defined coverage area, but we are particularly good at detecting objects that move, even if the movement is very small.

The Ultra-Wideband or UWB story started two decades ago with FCC opening up for new technological wireless opportunities. In this note we address UWB opportunities and constraints and point out the challenges of implementing
functional UWB technology.

Discovering presence of a person regardless of light conditions, weather and type of clothing has been addressed in several ways without robust solutions. Robust discovery of human presence by the unavoidable and tiny chest movement due to respiration is now feasible with the NOVELDA UWB radar.

The development of the NOVELDA UWB radar technology was a challenging endeavor requiring innovation based on deep understanding of radar fundamentals, signal processing and innovative engineering in modern digital technology (CMOS).