CRC-developed SDR technology deployed in commercial radios

The Communications Research Centre Canada (CRC) has achieved another first in the Software Defined Radio (SDR) industry – integrating its world-renowned technology into a commercial radio and shipping it to North American customers for deployment.

An emerging technology, SDR is a radio communication system that enables disparate handsets from different areas of the country to be able to communicate with each other through the use of specialized software. The CRC-developed Software Communications Architecture (SCA) V2.2 core framework is at the heart of the latest radio from Montréal-based Ultra Electronics, a leading global supplier of line-of-sight (LOS) radios and systems for mid-range tactical communications.

Earlier this month, the Tactical Communication Systems Division of Ultra Electronics announced that the 16Mb/s full-duplex version of its flagship AN/GRC-245 High-Capacity LOS radio has been delivered to several major customers. Ultra Electronics reports a strong demand for the new 16Mb/s radio, and has already secured a very large order backlog.

The technology behind SDR is applicable public safety scenarios, such as linking various emergency services during a hurricane. SDR is also well-established within the military sector as the radio technology of the future. The SCA, part of CRC’s SCARI Software Suite 2007, enables embedded systems manufacturers to leverage SDR for just about any industry, implementation or product. This will bring SDR technology to new domains, including the space, avionics, automobile, public safety and consumer electronics industries.

For more information about CRC’s SDR products and services, please visit: www.crc.gc.ca/sdr.