Communications of the ACM
No-Power Wi-Fi Connectivity Could Fuel Internet of Things Reality
Wi-Fi backscatter is a new communication system powered by RF signals that uses existing Wi-Fi infrastructure to provide Internet connectivity to Internet of Things-linked devices.
Credit: lauratoyota.com
University of Washington (UW) researchers have developed Wi-Fi backscatter, a new communication system that uses radio frequency signals as a power source and reuses existing Wi-Fi infrastructure to provide Internet connectivity to Internet of Things-linked devices. The new technology is the first that can connect battery-free devices to Wi-Fi infrastructure.
"We now have the ability to enable Wi-Fi connectivity for devices while consuming orders of magnitude less power than what Wi-Fi typically requires," says UW professor Shyam Gollakota.
The researchers developed an ultra-low power tag prototype with an antenna and circuitry that can communicate with Wi-Fi-enabled devices while consuming very little power. The tags work by searching for Wi-Fi signals moving between the router and the device, and encoding data by reflecting or not reflecting the Wi-Fi router's signals, slightly changing the wireless signal. The Wi-Fi-enabled devices can detect these small changes and receive data from the tag.
"If you're looking for specific patterns, you can find it among all the other Wi-Fi reflections in an environment," notes UW professor Joshua Smith.
During testing, the backscatter tag communicated with a Wi-Fi device at rates of 1 kilobit per second from about two meters away, and the researchers intend to broaden its range to about 20 meters.
From University of Washington News and Information
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