BodyWave™ UWB audio application case study: Remora PRO

• Remora PRO is a groundbreaking audio solution that brings CosmOS functionality to existing headsets, offering personalised audio experiences.
• The product faced significant wireless challenges - zero glitches, uncompressed multi-channel audio, low latency and bi-directional data transmission.
• AntennaWare’s BodyWave™ UWB antenna was chosen to overcome the reliability limitations of UWB technology in wearables.
• Close collaboration between AntennaWare and the Remora PRO team was crucial in meeting the ambitious development timeline.
• Launched at High End, Munich, Remora PRO demonstrated flawless wireless performance over the four days achieving a stable and reliable wireless UWB link at 10 metres plus, non-line-of-sight in the most challenging RF environments

With an ambitious development schedule, the AntennaWare team worked closely with engineers at Remora PRO to deliver a world-class product in time for a high-profile product launch.

Developed by a team of audio technology experts with over 30 years industry experience

Remora PRO is made by the team behind Sonical’s CosmOS (an Operating System for the Ear, enabling after-market configurability), the team believes that headsets have the potential to do much more than simply streaming audio. Remora PRO brings all the functionality made possible by CosmOS to existing headsets.

CosmOS brings a truly personalized audio experience to users via a myriad of downloadable apps (think of the App Store for your headset), and Remora PRO brings all this functionality to current headsets.

From multi-channel immersive audio and head-tracking for gamers to collecting biometric data for monitoring and analysis, the possibilities for CosmOS and Remora PRO are vast and transformative.

Addressing environmental concerns by extending the lifespan of currently owned products

In the race to make devices as cheap as possible, some TWS earbuds and Bluetooth headphones have almost become disposable items. Each one consisting of a number of batteries, silicon chips, other electronics and encased in plastic, it makes sense to address this. Remora PRO allows currently owned products to be upgraded and downloadable apps extend the lifespan of products that are already owned.

With a user base with no tolerance for glitches, exceptional wireless performance is critical for Remora PRO. Beyond the common challenges of body blocking and detuning experienced by wireless wearable devices, many potential use cases and users of Remora PRO require a level of wireless performance not possible with Bluetooth. Requirements including:

• Uncompressed audio
• Low latency
• Bi-directional data
• Unaffected by bandwidth congestion

To meet these needs, Remora PRO incorporates UWB (UltraWideBand) technology alongside Bluetooth. However, UWB’s delivery of significant data payloads at higher frequencies makes it more susceptible to the effects of body blocking and detuning, particularly with dynamic movement and non-line-of-sight requirements. A conflict with the potential users’ intolerance to dropouts or glitches.

Gary Spittle, Remora PRO CEO explains, “Our research showed us that many potential users still used wired headsets. Not because they didn’t want the convenience of wireless, in fact they were telling us they really did, but because they were unwilling or unable to make compromises in the audio quality or reliability in return. We knew without robust, high-quality wireless audio that the addressable market would be severely restricted.”

As experienced audio technologists, the Remora PRO team understood the importance of selecting the optimal antenna from the early stages of product development.

The decision to use AntennaWare’s BodyWave™ antenna technology for the UWB wireless connectivity was based on its ability to provide unrivalled quality, range, and reliability, without introducing compromises in the battery life, latency, or BOM costs.

Success factor - close collaboration

With an ambitious project turnaround from prototype development to high-stakes product launch at High End, Munich, the AntennaWare and Remora PRO technical teams worked closely to integrate, optimise and test the RF front end. At times travelling between East Coast USA and AntennaWare’s HQ in Belfast, N Ireland when in-person collaboration was most efficient to achieve the required results.

AntennaWare’s state-of-the-art testing facilities were utilised to ensure flawless wireless performance even under the most challenging conditions.

Remora PRO’s launch at High End, Munich was a resounding success. Running for four days without a dropout or glitch on the exhibition floor with a high RF S/N and multiple bodies walking between the Transmitter and Receiver. Proving that even under the most challenging RF conditions, the UWB wireless link is stable and reliable at 10 metres plus.

Remora PRO subsequently received many positive reviews from press and industry experts and the feedback from users has been overwhelmingly positive.

"Choosing the BodyWave™ antenna to handle the UWB wireless link, plus the support of the AntennaWare team has enabled us to deliver a wireless experience that meets all our performance goals and more importantly, to satisfy the expectations of our most demanding users. We couldn’t have achieved that otherwise,” says Gary. “The reliability of the wireless connection has unlocked many adjacent use cases for Remora PRO beyond what was initially foreseen, and we are excited to see where we can take it next.”