Intel always needs to drive and dominate any standards for wireless technologies that could end up embedded in a wide range of computing and consumer devices, and the emerging high speed multimedia networks running in 60GHz spectrum will be no exception. This band promises to support very speed high transmission of high definition video and other data, over short distances, and so standards could be important to defining the future home multimedia networks market. But there are several different groups seeking to create the standards and so shape this potentially huge sector, and Intel is now aiming to unify the two main ones within the auspices of the IEEE standards body.
The chip giant brought together 120 researchers last week to discuss a unified platform that would address a very broad range of computing and entertainment applications and so settle some of the technical and positioning conflicts between the two IEEE groups. One of these comes from the 802.11 Wi-Fi side, with a study group called VHT (Very High Throughput) trying to create a gigabit Wi-Fi standard in 60GHz.
The other, more established effort is the 802.15.3c group, the PAN (personal area networking) family of standards. This has an early draft of a standard that would enable multiple Gbps throughput aimed at links between home devices such as flat panel TVs and set-top boxes, and start-up SiBeam already has trial silicon. These chips also support the specs of the WirelessHD industry consortium, of which Intel is a member, and which could well become the marketing and certification arm of 802.15.3c, should that become a full standard.
However, the overlaps with VHT ‘ which is chaired by Intel – mean the IEEE is unlikely to support both efforts, and there would be the risk of splitting the 60GHz market rather than creating the volumes needed to achieve very low cost embedded chips. By bringing VHT, WirelessHD and 802.15.3c together, a unified platform would be created, that would put other 60GHz groups at a severe disadvantage, and which would bring together several efforts heavily influenced by Intel.
“We want an interoperable solution that goes across multiple use cases and products and avoids a fragmented ecosystem,” said Alan Crouch, general manager of Intel’s Communications Technology Lab in Hillsboro, Oregon. “We need to not optimize for one particular use case or product.’
Among the attendees at the meeting were representatives from Broadcom and Panasonic, both discussing 60GHz in handsets. Technical difficulties under debate included propagation losses of up to 20dB at these high frequencies, and how to keep the signal working when someone walks between two devices.
“It’s important that we get all the industry players interested in 60 GHz engaged with these [IEEE] groups,” Crouch said. “We need to let the IEEE process work.’ There was a certain irony in this comment, given that, last time an IEEE effort ‘ for an UltraWideBand-based 802.15.3 standard ‘ was torn between two groups, Intel took its own effort, WiMedia, out of the IEEE altogether, in effect killing the 802.15.3 UWB standard.