LED Technology as Option for Wireless Data Transmission
By Rob Scott
July 21, 2011
July 21, 2011
- We may see “Li-Fi” wireless in the future, as visible light communications and light-based data transmission technology continue to advance.
- Professor Harald Haas of the University of Edinburgh recently demonstrated a prototype of the technology at the TEDGlobal conference in Scotland.
- Haas used an LED bulb to transmit a video that was projected onto a screen behind him (at 10 megabits per second). He plans to reach 100 megabits per second by the end of the year.
- This approach may become a viable alternative for wireless communication as mobile devices continue to tax the radio spectrum.
- It is interesting to note that the idea of using light to send information is not new. Alexander Graham Bell sent a wireless phone message in 1880 using his Photophone.