The recent IBC show proved a very good experience for Belfast-based AntennaWare, a developer of personal antenna technology. A spin-out from Queens University founded by RF specialists Dr. Matthew Magill and Dr. Gareth Conway in 2020, the company signed a deal with Skylark Audio Industrial Co. of Shenzhen, China.
They are teaming up to develop “a next generation UWB headset incorporating AntennaWare’s BodyWave UWB antenna.” UWB is ultra-wideband, a two-way relatively energy efficient RF technology for short-range, high-bandwidth communications in things like smartphones robotics, asset management (and security) and, in this instance, wearables.
UWB signals are absorbed by the human body initially diminishing their application with things like headsets but AntennaWare’s BodyWave antenna technology was developed to change that.
Skylark is an ODM — original design and manufacturing —rather than an original equipment manufacturing (OEM). It is a manufacturer of lightweight consumer headsets and feels UWB could improve their audio performance but they need a better antenna.
“UWB technology offers high bandwidth, low latency and anti-interference, providing better audio quality and reduced latency compared to Bluetooth,” Skylark said.
AntennaWare CEO and Co-founder Dr. Gareth Conway said, “We are pleased they [Skylark] have chosen BodyWave antennas to solve the body blocking challenged experienced by UWB devices that have stunted its adoption up to now and that we can help them uncover the full potential of UWB for audio applications.”