UWB in Heterogeneous Access Networks: location-aware services

Mobile position-aware systems combined with modern wireless technologies are getting more and more important and everyone seems to realize that the market is a high potential industry. For mobile network it is a way to differentiate many mobile applications and services from PC (Personal Computer) applications and wired Internet services. Using mobile devices, LBSs (Location-Based Service) leverage a user-s physical location to provide enhanced services and experiences. LBSs enable a range of applications and services, such as navigation and mobile map services, workforce tracking, finding points of interest, and obtaining weather information. Nowadays most of the applications are based on the GPS (Global Positioning System). However, the availability of indoor location, which is not covered by satellite-based systems, and fast time to position fix is more and more needed for LBSs. This fact opens the door to UWB (Ultra Wide band) as a key technology to be taken into account in the development of novel and promising locationaware services, due to its intrinsic features for providing accurate indoor localization. Indoor location provided by UWB combined with cellular networks such as HSPA (High Speed Packet Access) or WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) will open the door to a large set of new location-aware services.