Tesla’s next car will be unlocked perfectly with UWB, suggests leak from FCC

Apple and Samsung have quietly contributed to new technology to find and unlock your car perfectly with your phone, without even taking it out of your pocket – and Tesla could be one of the first with the technology. Tesla is actively working on building UWB in its cars, according to documents filed with the Federal Communications Commission.

On September 9, the company presented six new “products” for FCC consideration, including two key rings, a security controller and a series of “terminals” that would be installed inside a vehicle’s frame and cabin:

According to FCC documents, at least three of these products explicitly support UWB communication.

Furthermore, Tesla’s filing with the FCC is unusual in that it includes a complete operational description of the technology, something that is usually edited. The highlights: it is an implementation based on UWB standards, which means that Apple and Samsung UWB phones should theoretically be compatible and was designed to let you know how far you are from the car.

This “range” is useful to prevent repetitive attacks that try to make your car think your key ring is closer than it really is. But also, theoretically, it unlocks the ability to find your car in a crowded parking lot using your phone, something Samsung is already planning to launch an app for later this year.

When I spoke with the chip supplier UWB NXP last year, the company’s CTO Lars Reger told me that future cars would likely need several of these UWB terminals inside the car, possibly on the door handles, to correctly triangulate their location and know if you’re inside or outside so, say, your kids can’t start the engine if you’re not really in the cabin. Apparently, Tesla thinks that the B-pillars (located between the side and rear windows of a car) and a piece of panel can be good places to place these antennas as well.

None of this means that Tesla will necessarily add the technology to its cars, but the FCC documents are usually a good sign that it is not just an experiment. FCC filings are usually one of the last points of reference before a product hits the market, as they are only needed if you are going to import, sell or do general testing of a radio product in the United States.

The last time we checked, BMW was the only other automaker committed to UWB.