PR releases

PULSE~LINK ANNOUNCES FIRST WLAN UWB EVALUATION KIT

London, UK - February 14, 2005— Pulse~LINK, Inc., an Ultra Wideband (UWB) fabless semiconductor company, today announced the availability of the world’s first UWB radio for Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs).  The release of its PLK23300-EVK Evaluation Kit is based on a new Continuous Wave UWB architecture (CWave™ UWB), disclosed by Pulse~LINK for the first time today.  The Pulse~LINK platform delivers wireless Gigabit data rates at Personal Area Network (WPAN) ranges and data rates capable of supporting multimedia and HDTV data streams at WLAN ranges.

Pulse~LINK’s CWave™ UWB technology is different than that of MB-OFDM and DS-UWB forms of Ultra Wideband presently pursued by other groups.  With its Continuous Wave architecture, Pulse~LINK is able to deliver significantly higher UWB data rates and provide the increased transmission range necessary for WLAN UWB communications.  “We are constantly asked if we are a MBOA or DS-UWB technology,” states John Santhoff, Pulse~LINK Founder and Chief Technology Officer.  “We are neither, but have held off on public discussions of our CWave™ technology until now. We waited for the release of our development platforms so our technology could be demonstrated publicly with real-world hardware that clearly validates the performance advantages of our approach.” The unveiling of Pulse~LINK’s CWave™ UWB architecture comes exactly three years to the date of the FCC’s initial ruling to allow commercial use of Ultra Wideband.

The CWave™ UWB architecture is significantly less complex than MB-OFDM UWB architectures requiring 128 Fourier Transforms which are frequency hopped over three separate “bands,” and is also unlike traditional “impulse” UWB architectures used by DS-UWB.  Instead, the CWave™ UWB signal derives from a continuous frequency waveform phase shifted to produce RF emissions that are filtered to meet the UWB regulatory mask.  The CWave™ UWB architecture employs no analog mixers or local oscillators, no up-conversion or down-conversion and features a low-power, high-bandwidth ADC with dynamic range exceeding 40dB.  Variable spreading codes yield extremely high data rates at short range, and can increase signal gain by more than 25dB for longer transmission ranges at lower data rates – both of which are validated with Pulse~LINK’s PLK23300-EVK Evaluation Kits.  This low-power, low complexity architecture easily translates to low-cost implementation in either CMOS or SiGe.

Pulse~LINK is making the PLK23300-EVK available to select strategic partners participating in the introduction of a specification alliance for CWave™ UWB.  Currently, the only standard pursuit for UWB is for WPAN technologies made possible through either MB-OFDM or DS-UWB implementations. Pulse~LINK’s performance achievements in CWave™ UWB communications have presented the need for a specification addressing more advanced WLAN UWB applications.

The formation of the Consumer Wireless Audio-Video Entertainment Alliance (CWAVE™ Alliance) will focus on the intelligent distribution of wireless HDTV, DVI, HDMI and 1394 video connectivity. Pulse~LINK recently formed a trade group to oversee compliance certification, Digital Rights Management, and interoperability testing for the development and deployment of CWave™ UWB communications technology.

Several demonstrations launching Pulse~LINK’s CWave™ technology using the newly released PLK23300-EVK will take place around the country in March.  Pulse~LINK will be exhibiting a pico-net streaming video between four evaluation kits at the 2005 Homeland and Global Security Summit in Washington, DC, March 01 through 03, as well as conducting a number of private demonstrations following the conference.  In addition, Pulse~LINK will be conducting a series of privately scheduled hands-on demonstration sessions at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Atlanta Georgia on March 13 and 14, preceding the IEEE standards conference. Attendees will receive hands-on experience operating and configuring working CWave™ UWB evaluation radios capable of delivering Gigabit data rates and multiple streams of video in a multi pico-net environment supporting QoS.

Pulse~LINK’s PLK23300-EVK enables the development of UWB consumer electronic devices utilizing the only UWB WLAN technology available today.   The PLK23300-EVK includes up to four fully operational UWB transceiver radios supporting multi pico-net operation and a full suite of diagnostic software including a GUI front panel that allows users the ability to modify and monitor extensive functional parameters of the UWB platform.

While the current focus of standards activities for UWB has been short range Wireless Personal Area Networking (WPAN), primarily for use as a USB cable replacement, Pulse~LINK’s higher data rate and longer range CWave™ UWB WLAN technology is designed to provide solutions for whole home digital lifestyles.  In addition to wireless connectivity from room to room, Pulse~LINK’s Gigabit data rates will enable short-range wireless connectivity of high-end devices using Firewire/1394b cables, which operate at speeds of up to 800Mbps, as well as wireless DVI and HDMI applications.  Pulse~LINK’s Gigabit CWave™ UWB chipset will be available later this year.