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 NEWS  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  February  13,  2003  Lisa  Gaisford  at  (202)  418-  7280 
 FCC  AFFIRMS  RULES  TO  AUTHORIZE  THE  DEPLOYMENT  OF  ULTRA-  WIDEBAND  TECHNOLOGY 
 Washington,  D.  C.  –  The  Federal  Communication  Commission  (FCC)  adopted  a  Memorandum  Opinion  and  Order  that  largely  reaffirmed  the  procedures  adopted  last  year  to 
 authorize  the  unlicensed  operations  of  ultra-  wideband  (“  UWB”)  devices.  Minor  changes  were  implemented  to  further  facilitate  the  operation  of  imaging  devices.  These  rule  amendments 
 respond  to  fourteen  petitions  for  reconsideration  that  were  filed  in  response  to  the  First  Report  and  Order  that  established  the  UWB  standards. 


 On  February  14,  2002,  the  Commission  established  regulations  that  permitted  the  marketing  and  operation  of  certain  types  of  new  products  incorporating  ultra-  wideband  UWB 
 technology.  UWB  technology  can  be  employed  for  a  vast  array  of  new  applications  that  have  the  potential  to  provide  significant  benefits  for  public  safety,  businesses  and  consumers.  Recent 
 advances  in  UWB  technology  have  resulted  in  its  potential  use  for  a  variety  of  applications  such  as  radar  imaging  of  objects  buried  under  the  ground  or  behind  walls  and  short-  range,  high-  speed  data 
 transmissions. 
 In  general,  the  Commission  did  not  make  any  significant  changes  to  the  existing  UWB  technical  parameters,  indicating  that  it  is  reluctant  to  do  so  until  it  has  gained  more  experience 
 with  UWB  devices.  The  Commission  also  indicated  that  any  major  changes  to  the  rules  for  existing  UWB  product  categories  at  this  early  stage  would  be  disruptive  to  current  industry 
 product  development  efforts.  Rather,  it  reviewed  the  requests  from  the  petitioners  and  granted  those  that  will  not  increase  the  interference  potential  of  UWB  devices.  The  Commission  denied 
 those  requests  that  sought  further  restrictions  on  UWB  operations. 
 The  Commission  expressed  its  belief  that  the  next  12  to  18  months  should  allow  the  introduction  of  UWB  devices  under  the  recently  adopted  rules.  The  Commission  indicted  that  it 


 also  intends  to  investigate  the  potential  impact  of  UWB  devices  on  various  radio  services  and  would  continue  its  review  of  the  UWB  standards  to  determine  where  additional  changes  warrant 
 consideration. 
 In  response  to  the  petitions,  the  Commission  amended  the  rules  to  facilitate  the  operation  of  through-  wall  imaging  systems  by  law  enforcement,  emergency  rescue  and  firefighter 


 personnel  in  emergency  situations;  eliminated  the  requirement  that  GPRs  and  wall  imaging  systems  operate  with  their  -10  dB  bandwidths  below  960  MHz  or  above  3.1  GHz;  specified  the 
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 limitations  on  who  may  operate  ground  penetrating  radar  (GPR)  systems  and  wall  imaging  systems  and  for  what  purposes;  eliminated  the  requirement  for  non-  hand  held  GPRs  to  employ  a 
 dead  man  switch;  clarified  the  coordination  requirements  for  imaging  devices;  and  clarified  the  rules  regarding  emissions  produced  by  digital  circuitry  used  by  UWB  transmitters. 


 The  Commission  also  proposed  additional  new  rules  to  address  issues  raised  regarding  the  operation  of  low  pulse  repetition  frequency  (PRF)  UWB  systems,  including  vehicular  radars, 
 in  the  3.1-  10.6  GHz  band;  the  operation  of  frequency  hopping  vehicular  radars  in  the  22-  29  GHz  band  as  UWB  devices;  the  establishment  of  new  peak  power  limits  for  wideband  Part  15  devices 
 that  do  not  operate  as  UWB  devices;  and  the  definition  of  a  UWB  device. 
 In  a  separate,  but  related  action,  the  Commission  denied  an  Application  for  Review  of  Certification  of  a  Time  Domain  Corporation  UWB  Transmitter  requested  by  a  coalition  of 
 companies  and  associations.  The  Time  Domain  device  is  a  transmit-  only  radio  to  be  used  by  UWB  application  developers  to  evaluate  UWB  propagation  and  co-  existence  with  other  RF 
 devices.  The  Commission  found  that  the  transmitter  complies  with  all  of  the  limits  in  the  Commission’s  rules 


 Action  by  the  Commission  February  12,  2003,  by  Memorandum  Opinion  and  Order  and  Further  Notice  of  Proposed  Rule  Making  in  ET  98-  153  (FCC  03-  33).  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners 
 Abernathy,  Copps,  Martin,  and  Adelstein.  Chairman  Powell  and  Commissioner  Copps  issuing  statements. 


 OET  Contact:  John  Reed,  Telephone:  (202)  418-  2455,  E-  mail:  JREED@  fcc.  gov 
 ET  Docket  No.  98-  153 
 -  FCC  – 
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