BARCELONA, Spain – Kumu Networks said it has developed technology that has the potential to increase spectral efficiency and improve microwave backhaul. The company claims its technology allows for a single radio channel to transmit and receive a signal at the same time, something that would seem to go against the 150-year history of wireless communications.

“What we’ve developed is basically noise canceling headsets for radios,” explained Steven Hong, director of product for Kumu Networks. “Effectively what we’ve done is connected the radio’s mouth to it’s ears, enabling it to shout as loud as it wants and hears silence, and enabling the other radio on the other side to transmit to the same channel.”

Hong noted that this full duplex actually doubles spectral efficiency.

Kumu said that it has developed technology that cancels self-interference, the “unwanted” energy that leaks into a radio’s receiver while transmitting. As a result of the cancellation, the receiver hears no noise from its transmitter, freeing it to cleanly receive external signals. This, Kumu claims, allows a radio using its self-interference cancellation technology to transmit and receive at the same time on the same frequency. the company added that this feature applies to all technologies without standard modifications.