The reason why the working distance of UWB base stations continues to increase - IOTE Internet of Things Exhibition

UWB technology has an interesting trend in the industry application market: the transmission distance of base stations is gradually increasing

A typical scene is a tunnel or mine. The characteristic of this scene is that the space is linear, there are not many obstructions in the middle, and UWB base stations are also laid out in a straight line. The farther the base station's working distance, the fewer base stations required for the project and the lower the project cost

Under market competition, the working distance of UWB base stations on the market is getting farther and farther. The working distance of base stations has expanded from tens of meters in the early days to 100m, 200m, 500m, 1000m, 2000m or even further.

The business logic behind this will not be discussed too much in this article.

Why do UWB base stations work farther and farther away? There are two key components, one is the antenna and the other is the power amplifier (PA)

This article will discuss the UWB-PA market in detail.

What is the role of PA?

The role of PA (power amplifier), as the name suggests, is a component that amplifies the intensity of the transmitted signal when the signal is transmitted. Its purpose is to allow the signal to be transmitted farther.

In communication technology, another concept is the radio frequency front-end chip (FEM). FEM mainly includes:

• Power amplifier (PA): used to increase the intensity of the transmitted signal and improve the signal transmission distance;
• Low noise amplifier (LNA): used to increase the strength of the received signal and improve the sensitivity of the signal;
• RF switch (Switch): controls the transmission and reception of signals;

In addition, there are other devices including filters

The above RF front-end chips can be used independently as discrete devices, or two or more bare chips can be packaged on the same substrate to form a more integrated and efficient RF front-end chip module (FEM). .

What are the scenarios where PA is suitable for UWB?

In UWB products, PA is often added, but not all scenarios are suitable for adding PA

Although PA can make the signal transmit farther, it also brings the problem of making the device consume more power.

Next, we will analyze the four main markets of UWB one by one:

• IoT industry market: In IoT industry applications, most positioning base station deployments require weak current construction. Therefore, this scenario has a basis for power extraction, and the B-side market is a closed environment, and supervision is not so strict. PA Very suitable for use.
• IoT consumer market: Among consumer hardware products, the requirements for power consumption are very high. For example, tag products have high power consumption due to UWB technology, which puts the battery endurance test to a great test. In addition, PA, battery Even more unbearable.
• Mobile phone market: When adding a PA to a mobile phone, on the one hand, the cost and board design difficulty must be considered; on the other hand, the management requirements of radio power consumption must also be considered.
• Automotive market: The factors to be considered when adding PA in the automotive field are basically similar to those in the mobile phone market. Power consumption is not a big issue, but regulatory requirements are an important factor.

In summary, UWB-PA products are very suitable for application scenarios in the IoT industry. In other scenarios, it depends on the situation. The specific decision depends on the form of the product and the conditions of use.

What is the performance of domestic UWB-PA?

To talk about PA products, we have to talk about the frequency band used by UWB.

In the U.S. FCC standards, the frequency band used for UWB is 3.1GHz-10.6GHz. This frequency band standard was also used in China at the beginning. However, in early 2023, the Radio Administration Bureau of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the "Ultra-Wideband (UWB) Equipment Radio Management Regulations (Draft for Comments)", according to the new version of the "Regulations", the frequency band used by domestic UWB technology in the future is: 7235-8750MHz.

Changes in the frequency band will have an impact on the product

The earliest commercial UWB chip product is DW1000, its operating frequency band is between 3.5Ghz-6GHz, and the corresponding power amplifier products also work in this frequency band

However, with China’s latest frequency band regulations, UWB frequency band requirements are limited to 7235-8750MHz, and PA products in the corresponding frequency band are also required.

According to research, in the domestic market, currently only Chipbaite Microelectronics (Wuxi) Co., Ltd. can provide high-frequency PA products that meet the new national standards. This product is paired with Decawave DW3000 and a number of domestic UWB SOCs. The manufacturer's main control chip has excellent performance and has achieved stable shipments in batches.

It is understood that Xinbaite has released a product for the 7235-8750MHz high-frequency UWB market: CB9328

CB9328 is a PA LNA Switch three-in-one FEM.

CB9328 is a front-end module (FEM). According to reports, it has a fully integrated power amplifier (PA) and low noise amplifier (LNA). CB9328 does not require external matching components, thereby reducing assembly and debugging complexity, reducing BOM cost and PCB area, achieving a low-cost solution

CB9328 has a unique bypass mode, which can bypass the LNA receiving signal when the input signal strength is high. It is also suitable for some occasions that only require a single power amplification. This innovative design significantly expands the application scope of CB9328

At the same time, CB9328 also has the advantages of high power output and low switching loss. Its transmitter can achieve an output power of up to 20dBm@7GHz, and an output gain of up to 23dB@6.5GHz and 21dB@8.5GHz. These excellent performances not only improve the sensitivity of the product and reduce the noise figure, but also enable ultra-wideband products to have stronger output power and longer transmission distance, while also reducing the overall cost of ultra-wideband transceivers and systems

It is reported that in addition to the mass-produced PA CBG9326, LNA CBG9092 and high-frequency FEM CB9328 that work in the UWB low-frequency band, Xinbaite is also developing and iterating the Bypass function that is more in line with national standards and market demand. High-frequency UWB PA/LNA/FEM, a UWB RF front-end product matrix that achieves full coverage of high and low frequency bands, and full coverage of discrete and integrated module products.

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