Ultra Wideband Signal Impact on IEEE802.11b Network Performance

This paper presents the results of a co-existence study investigating the impact of ultra wideband (UWB) interference on an IEEE802.11b network. Results are based on the experimental test measurements made at the University of Oulu, Finland using simple non-FCC compatible, high power UWB transmitters as interference sources. Preliminary results showed that the IEEE802.11b network suffered slightly in the presence of very significant UWB interference. In our study, many high power UWB transmitters have been used in close proximity to the victim system. The cumulative effect of the UWB interference generated in the study corresponds to the interference caused by several hundred of FCC compliant UWB devices. The measured signal-to-noise ratio reported by the victim system showed a degradation of 5.5 dB and 1.5 dB when 20 or 10 UWB transmitters were active, respectively.