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Florida company unveils low-power broadband technology

Jul 7, 2005 5:38 PM, By Donny Jackson

Florida-based xG Technology this week publicly introduced xMAX, a wireless broadband data technology that company officials say will deliver high-speed data over distances greater than WiMAX despite using such little power that it can operate without the need for dedicated frequencies.

“xMAX is a fundamental paradigm shift in the way radio signals are modulated and demodulated,” said xG Technology President and CTO Joe Bobier, principal inventor of xMAX.

Instead of modulating hundreds or thousands of radio-frequency (RF) cycles, xMAX modulates only a single RF cycle, greatly reducing power consumption and improving performance at longer distances with weaker signals, Bobier said. Although no dedicated spectrum is needed to deploy xMAX, service providers with dedicated spectrum will be able to use higher power levels to extend the signal range even further.

xG Technology has been testing the technology in labs for five years and has received several patents related to xMAX, said xG Technology Executive Chairman Rick Mooers. The fact that xMAX can be used without dedicated spectrum, or essentially allows incumbent licensees to reuse their spectrum, will create multiple business opportunities that industry officials already are discussing with the fledgling company.

“It’s going to redefine the way the FCC allocates spectrum,” Mooers said. “It can reinvigorate these sub-gigahertz frequencies.”

Indeed, Bobier said the “sweet spot” for xMAX are frequencies between 450 MHz and 1 GHz because of their favorable propagation characteristics. In addition to its wireless uses, xMAX demodulation also can be used to improve performance and range for wired technologies such as DSL, cable and broadband over powerline, he said.