First UWB chipset targets mobile transaction security

By Majeed Ahmad, contributing writer

Decawave has released its roadmap for an ultra-wideband (UWB) chipset family that is targeted at providing mobile transaction security in smartphones, wearables, and other connected devices. The chipsets will support the new IEEE 802.15.4z (4z) standard jointly developed by market leaders in mobile, automotive, and navigation industries.

Ciaran Connell, CEO and co-founder at Decawave, claims that it will be the first UWB chip to support the 4z standard thanks to the company’s strong position in standards and early investment in R&D. “The chipset will offer up to 6× power consumption reduction over the current technology and will support the 8-GHz band enabling worldwide operation,” said the company.

The 4z standard has been developed as a complement to the current 4a standard, also known as IEEE 802.15.4-2015, and driven by Decawave. The approval process for the IEEE 802.15.4z standard is expected to be completed during 2019.

Additions to the 4z standard:

• Totally secure ranging scheme thanks to a cyphered preamble and data frame
• The addition of higher data rate modes up to 27 Mbits/s with long-range capability
• The backwards compatibility to the currently existing 15.4a standard

The 4z standard brings robust security and high precision to location-awareness services. It combines the highly secure mobile financial and access transactions with the ability to use precise location to combat malicious attacks and, thus, prevent cyber-criminals from the hacking of wireless payments and the theft of modern vehicles.

Decawave expects to roll out different variants of the new chipsets starting in 2019.