Ultra-wideband communication systems and methods

Abstract

A method of communicating over a wideband communication channel divided into a plurality of sub-channels comprises dividing a single serial message intended for one of the plurality of communication devices into a plurality of parallel messages, encoding each of the plurality of parallel messages onto at least some of the plurality of sub-channels, and transmitting the encoded plurality of parallel messages to the communication device over the wideband communication channel. This Abstract is provided for the sole purpose of complying with the Abstract requirement rules that allow a reader to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the disclosure contained herein. This Abstract is submitted with the explicit understanding that it will not be used to interpret or to limit the scope or the meaning of the claims.

1 . A method of ultra-wideband communication, the method comprising the steps of: 
 generating an ultra-wideband communication channel comprising a radio frequency band segmented into a plurality of non-overlapping sub-channels;    dividing a single serial message into a plurality of parallel messages;    encoding each of the plurality of parallel messages onto at least some of the plurality of sub-channels; and    transmitting the plurality of parallel messages over the ultra-wideband communication channel.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the step of transmitting the plurality of parallel messages over the ultra-wideband channel comprises transmitting a plurality of discrete electromagnetic pulses, with each pulse having a duration that can range between about 10 picoseconds to about 1 microsecond.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the step of transmitting the plurality of parallel messages over the ultra-wideband channel comprises transmitting a plurality of discrete electromagnetic pulses, with each pulse occupying more than 500 megahertz of a radio frequency spectrum.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein each of the discrete electromagnetic pulses has a power that can range between about +30 dBm to about −60 dBm, as measured at a single frequency.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-channels occupies a discrete portion of the radio frequency band.  
     
     
         6 . A method of ultra-wideband communication, the method comprising the steps of: 
 generating an ultra-wideband communication channel comprising a radio frequency channel segmented into a plurality of non-overlapping sub-channels;    dividing a plurality of serial messages into a plurality of parallel messages;    encoding each of the plurality of parallel messages onto at least some of the plurality of sub-channels; and    transmitting the plurality of parallel messages over the ultra-wideband communication channel.    
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the plurality of parallel messages are transmitted to a plurality of ultra-wideband communication devices.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , further comprising a base station that dynamically assigns specific non-overlapping sub-channels to each of a plurality of ultra-wideband communication devices.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the base station assigns the non-overlapping sub-channels to an ultra-wideband communication device based at least in part on a signal-to-interference measurement received from each of the plurality of communication devices.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein each of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-channels occupies a discrete portion of the radio frequency band.  
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 6 , further comprising the steps of: 
 organizing a plurality of sub-channels into several sub-channel groups;    receiving a signal-to-interference measurement from each of a plurality of ultra-wideband communication devices for each sub-channel group;    comparing each signal interference measurement to a threshold value; and    assigning the sub-channel groups to specific ultra-wideband communication devices based on a comparison of the signal interference ratio measurements to the threshold value.    
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein each sub-channel comprises a radio frequency bandwidth that is defined by:  
           b =(1 +r )/ T    
       where b=a radio frequency bandwidth for each of the plurality of sub-channels, and r=a roll-off factor, and T=a symbol duration for each of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-channels.