AATD SBIR  A02-074, Phase I: Ultra Wideband Network Datalink

A thorough System Engineering Analysis of applying Ultra WideBand (UWB) technology to an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Wireless Network Data Link is being performed. UWB radio vendors have been surveyed to determine their interest and capabilities to meet the detailed requirements for a datalink system.  Technical analysis is being performed on UWB power and range limitations, antenna designs and patterns, link budgets, data framing format, maximum data transfer rates, and packaging issues to assess the feasibility of applying UWB technology in an Army operational environment. Datalink interface requirements will support an open architecture to allow the system to be hosted on several platforms and allow implementation of a wide variety of sensors and payloads. The Internet suite of communications protocols, commonly referred to as the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Suite, is the most widely deployed family of networking and communications protocols and is being used for this effort. Its adoption for layers above Layer 2 of the Open Systems Interconnect (OSI) model provides interoperability with an enormous body of COTS and GOTS products and other systems, enabling access to the entire information content of the Internet and military channels based on it. This effort was completed June 2003.