By Claus Hetting, WiFi NOW CEO & Chairman
UWB technology may well have outgrown the regulatory framework created for it nearly 25 years ago, which is why the FCC is now considering rules designed around what UWB is becoming rather than what it was in 2002. The new draft is scheduled for consideration at the FCC’s September 30 meeting and changes could be instrumental in launching UWB technology into an accelerated growth spree.
Nearly a quarter century after introducing its rules for ultra-wideband technology, the US Federal Communications Commission is preparing what it calls its first comprehensive review of the regulatory framework. Among the proposals are new rules intended to enable UWB for factory automation, autonomous navigation and AI-enabled sensing – while the FCC is also reconsidering restrictions affecting drones, aircraft, ships and satellites.
UWB technology has changed dramatically since the FCC adopted the United States’ first rules for unlicensed UWB operation in 2002. Now the FCC is – sensibly – proposing that the rules change with it. On September 9 the FCC released a proposed overhaul of its UWB regulations intended to accommodate applications that in many cases did not exist when the original framework was created. The proposals are contained in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) entitled Unleashing the Power of Unlicensed Ultra-Wideband Devices (find the NPRM here).
The document has been circulated for consideration at the FCC’s September 30 open meeting. Importantly, this means the changes have not yet been adopted. The FCC also notes that the proposals remain under consideration and could change before the Commission takes action.
UWB has outgrown rules written in 2002
Perhaps the most significant part of the proposal is the creation of a new category of UWB devices specifically intended to accommodate emerging applications including factory automation, autonomous navigation, and AI-enabled sensing.
The FCC is also proposing to update the regulatory definition of a UWB transmitter to accommodate additional modulation types and modernise the procedures used to measure UWB devices. It is seeking comments on possible changes to emission limits, duty-cycle restrictions and antenna requirements.
The Commission is also taking another look at some longstanding restrictions on where UWB can be used. Current FCC rules prohibit UWB operation aboard aircraft, ships and satellites. The new proceeding asks whether these restrictions should be reconsidered and specifically raises the possibility of facilitating UWB-based drone operations.
Other proposed changes include removing the written coordination requirement applying to UWB imaging systems, updating rules for ground-penetrating radar, and potentially simplifying redundant marketing, eligibility and labelling requirements.
From location technology to sensing and autonomous systems
The importance of the proceeding extends well beyond regulatory housekeeping. The existing US framework divides UWB into specific categories including indoor and handheld devices as well as ground-penetrating radar, wall imaging, through-wall imaging, surveillance and medical imaging systems. Those categories reflected what regulators understood UWB to be capable of more than two decades ago.
Since then UWB has developed into a technology for precision ranging and location, secure access, asset and sports tracking, industrial automation, navigation and increasingly sensing. The FCC also specifically highlights AI-enhanced UWB processing for non-invasive health monitoring among applications that have emerged since the original rules were adopted.
The mismatch has increasingly been handled through individual regulatory waivers. The FCC itself says UWB technology has “outpaced our rules,” creating a stream of waiver requests for functions that could not have been envisioned in 2002. That is arguably the central issue behind the new proceeding. Rather than continuing to accommodate new UWB applications through case-by-case exceptions, the FCC is considering whether the underlying regulatory framework itself should become broad enough to support the next generation of devices.
If adopted following the rulemaking process, a more flexible category encompassing sensing, autonomous navigation and factory automation could therefore lower an important regulatory barrier for UWB developers – and potentially accelerate the technology’s expansion into robotics, industrial safety, intelligent spaces and other emerging markets.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr describes the proposal as the Commission’s first comprehensive modernisation of its UWB rules since their adoption in 2002. The objective, he says, is to reshape the framework around today’s requirements while creating additional opportunities for unlicensed devices. For the UWB industry, the September 30 FCC meeting will therefore be one to watch closely.
For more about the FCC’s proposed UWB rulemaking, see the FCC fact sheet here.
/Claus.
