Qorvo QM33/QM35: The New Frontier in RTLS – A Leap Beyond Decawave DW1000

Unpacking the Evolution of Real-Time Location Systems

Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) are no longer just a nice-to-have; they’re a necessity for modern industries. From sprawling manufacturing plants to bustling hospitals, the demand for precise, continuous, and actionable location data is soaring. Businesses need granular visibility to optimize workflows, enhance asset utilization, and ensure safety. This isn’t just about knowing where something is, but exactly where it is, at all times.

Traditional RTLS technologies often hit roadblocks, struggling with:

• Elevated Throughput and Tag Density: Imagine thousands of assets and personnel in a single facility. Older systems buckle under the pressure of tracking so many tags simultaneously without sacrificing accuracy or drowning in network congestion.
• Superior Location Accuracy and Precision: Basic presence detection is out; centimeter-level accuracy is in. Think automated guided vehicle (AGV) navigation, precision tool tracking, and geofencing for restricted zones.
• Enhanced Refresh Rates and Low Latency: Fast-moving assets demand immediate and continuous updates. Stale data can derail dynamic process control and collision avoidance.
• Robustness in Challenging RF Environments: Industrial settings are notorious for metallic objects and dense material stacks that cause interference. RTLS needs to cut through the noise.
• Optimized Scalability and Enterprise Integration: As businesses grow, RTLS must scale effortlessly and integrate seamlessly with existing systems like ERP, MES, and WMS to unlock true business intelligence.

This is where Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technology steps in, fundamentally changing the game.

The Magic of UWB: Why Bandwidth Matters

UWB stands out because it uses an exceptionally wide bandwidth—think of it as a super-highway for data. This vast bandwidth is achieved by transmitting incredibly short pulses, sometimes lasting only a few nanoseconds. These “carrier-free” signals spread their energy widely across the frequency spectrum, making them appear almost like background noise to other wireless devices.

The real superpower of UWB for location sensing lies in its ability to precisely measure distance using the Time-of-Flight (ToF) principle. Imagine timing a tiny, sharp sound wave as it travels from one point to another – UWB does that with radio pulses. The sharp rise and fall times of these pulses are crucial for accurately pinpointing the exact arrival time, leading to highly accurate distance calculations because radio waves travel at a known speed (the speed of light).

Beyond simple ToF, UWB also employs advanced positioning techniques:

• Time Difference of Arrival (TDoA): A network of synchronized anchors measures the differences in arrival times from a tag’s signal, enabling multi-lateration to calculate the tag’s coordinates.
• Angle of Arrival (AoA) and Phase Difference of Arrival (PDoA): These techniques determine the direction from which a signal originates by analyzing phase differences as it arrives at multiple antennas.

The wide bandwidth and resulting short pulse duration are not just technical specs; they are the physical enablers for UWB’s high ranging accuracy and inherent robustness against multipath interference – a common enemy in indoor environments where signals bounce off surfaces. A sharper UWB pulse means finer resolution in determining exact transmission and reception times, making UWB inherently immune to multipath.

And here’s the crucial link: higher data rates are a direct consequence of this expansive bandwidth. When data can be transmitted faster, each device spends less time on the shared wireless channel, reducing “airtime”. This, in turn, boosts overall channel capacity, allowing for:

• More frequent position updates (higher refresh rates).
• Quicker reaction times for tracked assets.
• Support for a significantly larger number of tags simultaneously.

The Regulatory Roadmap: Guiding UWB’s Evolution

UWB’s global adoption is shaped by key regulatory bodies and standards:

• FCC Regulations (USA): Allocated 3.1 GHz to 10.6 GHz for UWB, with strict low power spectral density limits (-41.3 dBm/MHz) to ensure coexistence with other services.
• ETSI Regulations (Europe): Defines harmonized standards, with UWB communication devices typically operating in 3.1-4.8 GHz and 6-8.5 GHz bands.
• IEEE 802.15.4z: A critical amendment to the UWB standard, enhancing the High Rate Pulse (HRP) UWB Physical Layer (PHY). It introduced:

• Higher Pulse Repetition Frequency (HPRF) mode: Enabling pulse rates up to 249.6 MHz.
• Wider Channel Bandwidths: Including 499.2 MHz, 1081.6 MHz, 1331.2 MHz, and 1354.97 MHz across channels 0 to 15. These are vital for higher data rates and improved ranging precision.
• FiRa Consortium: Drives interoperability and defines specific performance requirements and a robust certification program for UWB products.

This continuous evolution of standards directly translates to the performance advancements we’re seeing in next-generation RTLS.

Decawave DW1000: A Pioneer’s Limits

The Decawave DW1000 was a groundbreaking single-chip UWB transceiver when it launched in 2014. It made UWB accessible and viable for RTLS, compliant with the IEEE 802.15.4a amendment for high-resolution ranging. It supported six RF channels (3.5 GHz to 6.5 GHz) and data rates up to 6.8 Mbps.

However, in today’s demanding RTLS environments, the DW1000 reveals several limitations:

• Ranging Accuracy Challenges: The DW1000’s receiver sets its timestamp earlier with stronger incoming signals, requiring complex external software compensation for consistent ranging. Its accuracy can also be compromised by significant external electromagnetic noise and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) conditions prevalent in cluttered indoor settings.
• External MCU Dependency: It functions as a transceiver, needing an external microcontroller (MCU) to manage operations and process raw UWB data. This adds to board space, Bill of Materials (BOM), and power consumption.
• Limited AoA/PDoA Support: The DW1000 doesn’t natively support Phase Difference of Arrival (PDoA). For Angle of Arrival (AoA), it requires two separate chips to achieve less than 5 degrees accuracy, significantly increasing hardware complexity and cost for directional sensing.
• Vulnerability to Wi-Fi 6E: Despite UWB’s inherent low power, the emergence of high-power Wi-Fi 6E (which overlaps with some UWB channels) has revealed a critical vulnerability. Experimental studies showed severe performance degradation for DW1000 systems co-located with Wi-Fi 6E traffic, with packet loss rates as high as 96% and ranging success rates plummeting to 4%. This necessitates complex, active mitigation strategies that can impact reliability and latency.

Qorvo QM33/QM35: The Next Generation Arrives

The Qorvo QM33 and QM35 series mark a substantial generational leap in UWB technology, addressing the limitations of older chipsets and meeting the escalating demands of modern RTLS.

Key Advancements:

• Cutting-Edge Compliance: The QM33120W complies with IEEE 802.15.4-2020 and 802.15.4z-2020 (supporting BPRF mode). The QM35825 is an even more advanced System-on-Chip (SoC), compliant with IEEE 802.15.4™-2024, supporting HRP, BPRF, and HPRF modes.
• Higher Bandwidths and Pulse Repetition Frequencies: These chips leverage higher UWB frequency bands (channels 5 and 9). Their full support for IEEE 802.15.4z HRP and HPRF modes enables significantly higher pulse rates (up to 249.6 MHz). This boosts ranging accuracy by providing more samples per unit time. The standard also specifies much wider channel bandwidths (up to 1354.97 MHz), crucial for higher data rates and superior ranging precision.
• Expanded Data Rate Capabilities: This is where the QM35825 truly shines. While the QM33120W supports 6.8 Mbps like the DW1000, the QM35825 introduces higher rates of 7.8 Mbps, 27.2 Mbps, 31.2 Mbps, and a proprietary mode reaching an astounding 62.4 Mbps. This is almost a tenfold increase over the DW1000’s maximum!
• The Impact: Higher data rates mean location update packets are transmitted in a fraction of the time, dramatically reducing “airtime”. This frees up channel capacity, allowing for denser tag deployments and more responsive tracking.

Integrated Features for Simplified Design and Enhanced Performance:

• On-Chip MCU: The QM35825 integrates a powerful Cortex-M33 core with a Secure Enclave directly onto the UWB chip. This is a huge leap from the DW1000’s external MCU reliance, simplifying board design, reducing BOM, and optimizing power consumption.
• Multi-Antenna Support & Advanced Ranging: The QM35825 offers four flexible RF ports and Receiver (Rx) diversity with automatic switching, while the QM33120W has two antenna ports. This enables precise 3D Angle-of-Arrival (AoA) measurements (accurate to +/- 2 degrees) and full support for Phase Difference of Arrival (PDoA). This is a massive upgrade from the DW1000, which required two chips for basic AoA and completely lacked PDoA.
• Enhanced Security: These chips significantly boost security for ranging and data transfer. They support secure ranging using Scrambled Time Stamp (STS) and enhanced ToF security options, operating without an external secure element. The QM35825 is also SESIP3 compliant and offers hardware support for cryptographic functions like RSA, SHA, AES, and True Random Number Generation (TRNG). This is crucial for applications like secure car access and mobile payments, protecting against spoofing and relay attacks.

Transforming RTLS: Scalability and Performance Unleashed

The advancements in QM33/QM35 directly translate into unprecedented RTLS capabilities:

1. Superior Throughput and Reduced Latency

The almost tenfold increase in data rates, particularly the QM35825’s 62.4 Mbps, directly means location updates and other data can be transmitted significantly faster. This proportional reduction in transmission time creates substantial headroom for RTLS scalability.

• Faster Update Rates: Less airtime means more frequent location updates, leading to substantially lower latency. UWB systems already boast low latency (under 1 ms), but QM33/QM35 push this further, enabling up to 1000 updates per second.
• Real-Time Responsiveness: The QM35825’s on-chip computing capabilities mean ranging calculations can be performed locally, reducing the need to transmit raw data to a central server. This minimizes end-to-end latency, making these chipsets ideal for critical applications like autonomous vehicle navigation and robotic control.

2. Supporting Higher Tag Densities

The ability to transmit packets faster means each device occupies the wireless channel for a shorter duration. This significantly lowers the probability of collisions in dense environments, improving channel utilization and allowing more devices to share the same spectrum effectively.

• Increased Capacity: With QM35825’s higher data rates, the “blink TX time” (time a tag occupies the channel for a transmission) is substantially reduced. This directly allows for a much greater density of tags to be tracked simultaneously within a single localization cell, moving from hundreds to potentially thousands of tags.

3. Advanced Coexistence and Interference Mitigation

While UWB’s inherent low power spectral density is designed for coexistence, high-power Wi-Fi 6E demonstrated the limits of this passive approach with older chips like DW1000. QM33/QM35 actively tackle this:

• Hardware-Level Resilience: The QM35825 features Receiver (Rx) diversity with automatic switching and a flexible 4-antenna configuration. This allows it to select the best signal from multiple antennas, significantly improving signal quality in the presence of multipath or noise.
• Integrated Filtering: Qorvo’s UWB technology includes on-chip filters designed to “eliminate or minimize undesired interference between bands and wireless standards”.
• Configurable Parameters: Software-configurable parameters like different preamble codes and adjusting the Pulse Repetition Frequency (PRF) can reduce cross-channel interference and enhance channel isolation.

This combination of integrated hardware capabilities and flexible software parameters provides a more comprehensive and effective strategy against interference, vital for reliable RTLS operation in congested RF environments.

The Future of RTLS: Optimized Protocols and Security

Next-generation UWB chipsets are not just about raw performance; they’re about smarter, more secure RTLS.

IEEE 802.15.4z MAC Enhancements:

This standard focuses on security and robustness. It introduces cryptographic protection for ranging measurements, specifically to mitigate spoofing and relay attacks through mechanisms like Scrambled Time Stamp (STS). This adds crucial integrity and trustworthiness to location data for sensitive applications.

FiRa Consortium’s Role in Interoperability:

FiRa builds on IEEE 802.15.4/4z, ensuring UWB products from different manufacturers can seamlessly communicate.

• Hybrid UWB Scheduling (HUS): A significant innovation designed for deterministic performance in complex, multi-application environments. HUS allows various UWB features to work together predictably, minimizing contention and ensuring quality of service.
• Dedicated Data Transfer: Allocates specific airtime slots exclusively for data transfer, independent of ranging operations. This decouples data transmission from ranging, optimizing throughput for data-intensive RTLS applications and maximizing channel utilization for specific traffic types.

Dynamic Channel Allocation Strategies:

In complex RTLS environments, dynamic channel allocation (DCA) and adaptive resource algorithms are crucial. These strategies optimize UWB subband and transmit power allocation based on real-time channel conditions and traffic loads, ensuring maximal throughput and minimal power consumption.

The Imperative of Secure Ranging and Data Transfer:

As UWB moves into critical applications, robust security is paramount. IEEE 802.15.4z directly addresses this with cryptographic protection for ranging, mitigating spoofing and relay attacks. Newer chips like QM35825 integrate hardware-level security features such as Secure Boot, Secure Debug, a Secure Enclave, and hardware support for cryptographic algorithms. The QM35825’s SESIP3 compliance further indicates a high level of security assurance.

Real-World Impact: Unleashing New Possibilities

The leap from DW1000 to QM33/QM35 translates into tangible benefits:

Performance Benchmarking:

Real-World Use Cases:

• Industrial Automation: QM33/QM35 enable precise AGV navigation, patient flow monitoring in healthcare, and safety zone enforcement in hazardous areas. One factory using UWB RTLS saw a 10% increase in productivity and a 50% boost in maintenance performance.
• Consumer IoT: Interoperability with Apple U1/U2 chips and FiRa compatibility enables seamless secure car access, tap-free mobile payments, and location-aware sensing for smart home devices.
• Beyond Location: The QM35825’s on-chip computing supports radar functions for motion detection, vital sign monitoring, people counting, and even gesture detection, expanding UWB’s utility far beyond traditional ranging.

Key Considerations for Future Deployments

While QM33/QM35 offer significant advantages, a holistic approach is key. The RTLS landscape is dynamic, with emerging technologies like Quantum RTLS claiming millimeter-level accuracy (1.5 mm). The choice of technology depends on specific precision requirements, budget, existing device ecosystems, and environmental conditions. For instance, while UWB excels in high-precision, high-refresh-rate applications, BLE might be more cost-effective for large-scale deployments where meter-level accuracy is sufficient. A hybrid approach, combining BLE for coarse positioning and UWB for fine-grained accuracy in critical zones, can also be optimal. Ultimately, seamless integration with existing enterprise systems (WMS, ERP, MES) is crucial to transform location data into actionable insights and achieve a full return on investment.

The Road Ahead for UWB

Qorvo’s QM33 and QM35 series unequivocally demonstrate a significant leap in UWB RTLS performance. This is driven by higher bandwidths, expanded data rates, compliance with IEEE 802.15.4z, and adherence to FiRa interoperability specifications. The almost tenfold increase in throughput from DW1000 to QM35825 fundamentally improves airtime efficiency, enabling faster refresh rates and supporting higher tag densities.

With integrated MCUs, multi-antenna support for 3D AoA/PDoA, and robust hardware-accelerated security, QM33/QM35 reduce system complexity and provide a level of security crucial for sensitive applications. They address the limitations of older chipsets, offering advanced interference mitigation and MAC protocol enhancements for robust, deterministic performance in complex RF environments.

The UWB ecosystem is set for continued growth. Ongoing standardization efforts and FiRa specifications will further refine capabilities. The integration of UWB with other sensing modalities, as seen in the QM35825’s radar capabilities, will expand its utility. UWB’s increasing role in augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), Industry 4.0, automation, robotics, and worker safety solidifies its position as a foundational technology for precise spatial awareness in our connected world. The continuous evolution of UWB chipsets like QM33/QM35 will be instrumental in unlocking the full potential of these advanced RTLS applications.

Partnering for Your UWB Transition

We are proud to be a certified Qorvo partner. This means we are intimately familiar with the QM33 and QM35 series, possessing deep technical expertise and hands-on experience with these advanced chips. We understand the nuances of their capabilities and how to best leverage them for optimal RTLS performance. If your company is considering an upgrade from older DW1000-based systems, or if you’re looking to implement a new, high-performance RTLS solution, needCode has the capabilities and resources to guide you through a seamless transition to QM33 and QM35. We can help you unlock the full potential of next-generation UWB for your operational efficiencies, asset management, and safety protocols.