Samsung's first ultra-wideband chip boasts 'centimeter-level accuracy' for phone...

Samsung's first ultra-wideband chip boasts 'centimeter-level accuracy' for phones and cars

Samsung Electronics has revealed a new Exynos Connect brand for low-range communication solutions that combine Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and ultra-wideband. The first chip to debut in the family is the U100—an ultra-wideband chip for mobile and automotive devices.

The Exynos Connect U100 is a low-power processor that facilitates a broad frequency spectrum for short-range communications. Giving up long-range transmissions enables fast data transfers at low power consumption and immensely high spatial and directional orientation accuracy. Samsung claims U100's ToA (time of arrival) and AoA (three-dimensional angle of arrival) measurements allow single-digit centimeter accuracy and under five degrees of angular accuracy.

Ultra-wideband chips, such as Samsung Exynos Connect U100 or Apple's U1 (used in AirTags, AirPods Pro 2, and other devices), allow precise object tracking in specific environments where GPS is unavailable. Samsung says its newest processor will come in handy for AR and VR applications that require accurate real-time object and people tracking. Manufacturers also use UWB for trackers, such as AirTags.

The Exynos Connect U100 packs several components (Radio Frequency, baseband, embedded Flash, memory, and power management) in a single chip, making it a perfect solution for compact devices like smartphones. Low power consumption also maximizes battery life in mobile, automotive, and IoT solutions with limited battery capacities.

Finally, Samsung promises secure and reliable communication with a hardware encryption engine compliant with the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC) Digital Key Release 3.0. The latter is a standard for storing, authenticating, and exchanging digital keys in modern vehicles.