A fast acquisition system for ultra-wideband wireless multiple-access communications

Ultra-Wideband (UWB) has been recently promoted as a very promising technology for wireless communications. Rapid and accurate timing acquisition of ultra-short pulses and the high sampling rates required create challenges for both signal acquisition and the overall UWB transceiver implementation, and even more so under non-ideal conditions. In this paper, we evaluate the performance of a computationally-efficient implementation of a DS-UWB acquisition scheme. The suggested rapid acquisition system based on a block-processing technique adapted to a circular frequency domain correlation, shows explicit design characteristics that offer greatly improved acquisition time, accuracy and implementation cost, while also yielding very satisfactory performances at high noise and MAI levels.

Ultra-wideband (UWB) technology offers a promising solution to the RF spectrum drought by allowing new services to coexist with current radio systems with minimal or no interference. This coexistence brings the advantage of avoiding the expensive spectrum licensing fees that providers of all other radio services must pay. In Ultra Wide Band technology, the conventional analog waveform is a simple pulse which in general is directly radiated to the air. These short pulses have typical widths of less than 1 nanosecond and thus bandwidth of over 1 GHz. Due to this wide bandwidth, Federal Communication Commission(FCC) has imposed certain restrictions on the emission limits of UWB systems. Inorder to fit well to the FCC mask, the basic pulse shapes have to be modified. So pulse shaping is very much relevant in UWB domain. The immediate objective of this paper is to design an optimal pulse shaping technique. This paper proposes a hybrid approach for UWB pulse shaping which utilises ideas from existing two techniques.

Generation of orthogonal UWB shaping pulses based on compressed chirp signal

Choice of ultra wideband (UWB) pulse shapes has become an interesting challenge such that the spectral limits of the frequency band approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) can be utilised efficiently. In this paper, we compare the efficiency of various UWB pulse shapes based upon their power spectral density (PSD) and autocorrelation functions (ACF). We propose a set of prolate spheroidal wave functions (PSWF) for a typical M-ary pulse shape modulation (PSM) scheme. In the process, we show closed form expressions for the ACF of PSWF-based UWB pulse shapes of different orders.

Ultra-wideband (UWB) communication systems provide very high data rates by transmitting extremely short duration pulses. The impulse waveform is one of the key factors that influence the performance of these systems. While fulfilling the FCC spectral emission requirements, the pulse shape must offer high detection capabilities with suitable levels of accuracy. In this paper, we evaluate the effect of pulse shapes on the performance of an UWB computationally-efficient acquisition scheme in the presence of multiple user interference (MUI) and Gaussian noise. In the comparisons, different pulses with same duration were used in extensive Monte-Carlo simulations. Results show that the pulse shape has a noticeable impact on the performance of our UWB computationally-efficient acquisition scheme. Moreover, it is concluded that the 6th or the 8th order Gaussian derivative is the most suitable pulse shape to choose, depending on spectral bandwidth requirements.

Ultra wide band (UWB) is an extremely promising wireless technology for researchers and industrials. One of the most interesting is its high data rate and fading robustness due to selective frequency fading. However, beside such advantages, UWB system performance is highly affected by existing narrowband interference (NBI), undesired UWB signals and tone/multi-tone noises. For this reason, research about NBI cancellation is still a challenge to improve the system performance vs. receiver complexity, power consumption, linearity, etc. In this work, the two major receiver sections, i.e., analog (radiofrequency or RF) and digital (digital signal processing or DSP), were considered and new techniques proposed to reduce circuit complexity and power consumption, while improving signal parameters. In the RF section, different multiband UWB low-noise amplifier key design parameters were investigated like circuit configuration, input matching and desired/undesired frequency band filtering, highlighting the most suitable filtering package for efficient UWB NBI cancellation. In the DSP section, due to pulse transmitter signals, different issues like modulation type and level, pulse variety, shape and color noise/tone noise assumptions, were addressed for efficient NBI cancelation. A comparison was performed in terms of bit-error rate, signal-to-interference ratio, signal-to-noise ratio, and channel capacity to highlight the most suitable parameters for efficient DSP design. The optimum number of filters that allows the filter bandwidth to be reduced by following the required low sampling rate and thus improving the system bit error rate was also investigated.

In this paper we test and compare different modulation strategies to be used in ultra-wide band (IR-UWB) communications. In the UWB systems of interest in this work the information is conveyed by short-duration pulses; the modulation scheme determine how the data stream is to be transmitted over those pulses. Here we test and compare several schemes based on three types of modulation. The first type is the pulse position modulation (PPM), which includes a pulse delay according to the data to be transmitted. The second is the recently proposed pulse shape modulation (PSM), that uses a different pulse shape to each data. The third one, proposed in this paper, is an M-ary modulation scheme that combines the shape and amplitude of the pulse to transmit the data, which we call pulse amplitude and shape modulation (PASM). Other M-ary schemes are tested, including the recent orthogonal M-ary PSM, based on orthogonal Hermite functions, and a new quaternary PPM scheme, also proposed here. All schemes are tested over an AWG channel.

The emerging feature-rich and high-data-rate wireless applications have put increasing demand on radio spectrum. The scarcity of spectrum and the inefficiency in its usage, as caused by the current radio spectrum regulations, necessitate the development of new dynamic spectrum allocation policies to better exploit the existing spectrum. The current spectrum allocation regulations assign specific bands to particular services, and grant licensed band access to licensed users only. Cognitive Radio (CR) will revolutionize the way spectrum is allocated. In a CR network, the intelligent radio part allows unlicensed users (secondary users) to access spectrum bands licensed to primary users, while avoiding interference with them. In this scheme, a secondary user can use spectrum sensing hardware/software to locate spectrum portions with reduced primary user activity or idle spectrum slots, select the best available channel, coordinate access to this channel with other secondary users, and vacate the channel when a primary user needs it. To achieve this, the transceiver in a CR system should have awareness of the radio environment in terms of spectrum usage, power spectral density of transmitted/received signals, and wireless protocol signaling, should be able to adaptively tune system parameters such as transmit power, carrier frequency, and modulation strategy. The transceiver should also be ended with an antenna system that can simultaneously operate over a wide frequency band (sensing) and a chosen narrow band (communication), or operate over an ultra-wide frequency band while possibly blocking signals in a narrow frequency range. Ultra-wideband (UWB) is a transmission technique that uses pulses with a very short time duration across a very large frequency portion of the spectrum. UWB is different from other radio frequency communication techniques in that it does not use RF carriers, but instead employs modulated high frequency pulses of low power with a duration of less than 1 nanosecond. From the perspective of other communication systems, the UWB transmissions are part of the low power background noise. Therefore UWB promises to enable the usage of licensed spectrum without harmful interference to primary communication systems, and can be used as an enabling technology for implementing CR. In this chapter, we offer a general overview of Cognitive Radio and dynamic spectrum access, discuss the advantages of using UWB as an enabling technology for CR, and give

1.1 Impulse Radio (IR) Ultra Wideband (UWB) Communications Ultra wideband (UWB) communication is a fast emerging technology that offers new opportunities such as high data rates, low equipment cost, low power, precise positioning capability and extremely low interference Ghawami (2005). A wide range of possible UWB communication system applications includes radars due to UWB ultra high precision ranging at the centimeter level, wireless personal area networks (WPAN), sensor networks, imaging systems, UWB positioning systems, etc. Yang (2004), Kshetrimayum (2009). From a commercial point of view, the high data rates are the most attractive feature of UWB systems for which speeds of over 100Mb/s have been demonstrated Ghawami (2005). There exist three main types of UWB technologies: impulse radio (IR UWB), direct sequence (DS UWB), and multi-band orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (MB OFDM) Ran (2009). IR UWB communication technique is essentially different from all other communication techniques because it is carrier free and uses for communication between transmitters and receivers very narrow radio frequency (RF) pulses generated from the UWB pulse generator, while traditional transmission systems transmit information by varying the power, frequency, and/or phase of a sinusoidal wave in a modulation process Kshetrimayum (2009), Yao (2007). Consequently, complicated frequency mixers and local oscillators for carrier frequency up and down conversion are not necessary Yao (2007). IR UWB modulation techniques are especially important because the UWB spectrum has been made available by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and it can be used with IRs developed to date Lin (2005). Waveforms for IR UWB are designed to obtain a flat frequency response over the bandwidth of the pulse and to avoid a DC component. The large spectrum of a UWB signal may interfere with existing users. In order to keep this interference to the minimum, FCC specifies spectral masks for different applications, i.e. the allowed power output for specific frequencies Ghawami (2005). A contiguous bandwidth of 7.5GHz is available in the frequency interval of (3.1− 10.6)GHz at a maximum power output of −41.3dBm/MHz which is considered as extremely low Ghawami (2005). The power spectral density (PSD) of UWB systems defined as a ratio of the transmitted power P in watts and a signal bandwidth B in hertz is extremely low as compared to other communication systems due to the very wide bandwidth B of short pulses that are typically of nanosecond or picosecond order Ghawami (2005). The selection of the impulse signal type for IR UWB communication system is essential since it determines

In the ultra-wideband (UWB) communication systems, a critical spectral mask is released to restrict the allowable interference to other wireless devices by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and then some pulse shaping methods have been presented to fulfil the mask. However, most pulse shaping methods do not consider the antenna distortion which cannot be neglected in the UWB communication systems compared with the conventional systems. To this end, an orthogonal wavelet based pulse shaping method is proposed in this paper to integrate compensation of antenna distortion into pulse shaping. Simulation results show that the novel pulse shaping method can be used to achieve compensation for antenna distortion, optimization of transmission power spectrum, and simplification of the algorithm, as well as simple implementation of the pulse generator.

FIMAR: Fast incremental memory acquisition and restoration system for temporal-dimension forensic analysis

In-car wireless data communications systems require a short-range unlicensed radio communications technology that causes a very low level of interference in the other, already deployed radio links and networks, offers low and medium data rate, can reuse the already occupied radio-frequency (RF) bands, and assures low probability of message collisions. Ultrawide band (UWB) impulse radio employs RF pulses with very short duration to carry the information; consequently, it is an optimal candidate for the in-car wireless communications and intravehicular wireless sensor networks. Data rate and shape of RF carrier pulse determine the performance of a UWB radio link. To limit the interference caused, the maximum power radiated by an UWB device is restricted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the U.S. Introducing a new mathematical model and starting from the FCC regulations, analytical expressions for the calculation of FCC power limits are derived here. It is shown that the low- and high-rate UWB impulse radio systems are peak and average power limited, respectively. The relationship between the mathematical model and the parameters of an UWB carrier pulse used in a built UWB radio is established. The performances of RF carrier pulses known from the literature are evaluated and compared. All expressions derived are verified by measurements.

The paper addresses the performance analysis of pulse-shaped direct-sequence ultra-wideband (UWB) communication systems employing offset quadrature phase shift keying (OQPSK). The proposed system offers many advantages over carrier-less UWB schemes, as pulse-shaped OQPSK spreading gives better phase randomization in multi-user interference scenarios, and is also useful for minimizing large phase jumps in the modulated signals, which reduces spectral re-growth and adjacent channel interference, particularly in the presence of non-linear amplifiers. Bit error probability results are derived for fading channels with selection diversity and maximum ratio combining receivers. Numerical examples with pulse shapes based on Gaussian monocycle derivatives and modified Hermite polynomials are given to illustrate the relative performance comparisons among different chip pulse shapes and diversity combining techniques.

Ultra wideband (UWB) technology has been widely researched for both radar and communication systems. However, detecting the presence of a signal is essential and challenging for many applications. In this paper, we propose a novel detector for UWB radar signals with UWB communication interference by exploiting the signal cyclic features. A single-cycle detector based on fundamental cyclic frequency of radar signal is proposed to detect UWB radar signal. Simulation results illustrate the possibility to detect the UWB radar signal under the coexistence of a UWB communication signal and the proposed scheme is compared with conventional detectors for UWB radar systems.

Under Phase I of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Networking in Extreme Environments (NETEX) initiative, Multispectral Solutions, Inc. (MSSI) was tasked with the development of a general purpose, ultra wideband hardware simulator capable of reproducing a wide variety of ultra wideband (UWB) waveforms. The simulator, with UWB outputs from baseband through millimeter wave, was to be used for the purpose of electromagnetic susceptibility testing of legacy military radio, radar and positioning systems. The ultimate goal of this portion of the Phase I program was the quantitative determination of those UWB parameters (e.g., frequency, power, pulse rate, pulse shape, dithering, etc.), which had the least impact on the operational performance of legacy designs. This paper describes the development of the MSSI NETEX UWB simulator (BFPl000).