VLC Potential Applications

As a complementary of other RF technologies used today, or even a replacement in some cases, VLC can be potentially used for the same applications and even more. The only prerequisite for its use is a potential light source which could be an ordinary LED and a receiver which is a simple photodetector. In a very optimistic scenario (at least for now) even the integrated camera of a smart phone could be that receiver. The simplicity of such a system and the high availability of these components make it very accessible.

Is Light Fidelity (LiFi) going to replace Wireless fidelity (WiFi) or at least constrain its use? WiFi is massively deployed, either for domestic use, in offices, public places as hotspots or anywhere else and it can offer data rates up to 600Mbps (at least theoretically for the 802.11n standard). But as the WiFi standards uses a very small part of the electromagnetic spectrum at 2.4 and 5GHz its capabilities are inherently constraint despite the techniques used like OFDM, DSSS, MIMO etc. In telecommunication terms, LiFi is not so different. The RF transmitting antenna is replaced by a LED (light emitting diode) controlled by a simple microchip and the receiver antenna by a photodetector. Data rates of 3.7Gbps [1], 1,1Gbps [2], 800Mbps [3] have been demonstrated using standard off - the - shelf LEDs. For such a young technology these throughputs are very promising.

LiFi can be used instead of WiFi at home, offices and conference rooms for internet access and video streaming, at public places as free hotspots, at museums, malls, stores, airports, train stations etc. for providing information or even at planes where WiFi is not often provided. Even at hospitals LiFi could offer connectivity through illumination or be used for new medical applications and instruments. 

Apart from the more mainstream applications there are also more sophisticated ones. A big effort is currently put in vehicular networks – in other words the communication between cars and the traffic control – mainly for safety reasons. Every car carries a light source, thus a data transmitter, making VLC a perfect candidate for car to car communications and information exchange with the traffic lights or other hotspots. Moreover, potentials for indoor positioning system have been reported thus expanding the capabilities of the current systems. Making one step further into even more specialized applications, VLC could be used at places – media – were RF signals cannot propagate (due to high losses) like the bottom of the oceans for underwater communications.

 References 

[1] http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/epaper/2013-10/18/content_17043589.htm

[2] http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20140408005738/en/Li-Fi-breakthrough-data-transmitted-LED-bulbs-record

[3] http://spie.org/x84327.xml?ArticleID=x84327