New Wi-Fi backscatter technology allows you to create communication modules that do not need active power

Of course, this is not about refrigerators and microwave ovens, but about miniature devices, communication modules of a new type. A group of engineers from the University of Wanshington are currently working on a Wi-Fi backscatter project that can significantly reduce energy costs for the Internet of Things, and allow wireless modules in various devices to work without consuming the device’s battery power.

The authors of the project believe that the “Wi-Fi backscatter” is an important step in the development of the “Internet of Things”, where now more and more devices are appearing, including refrigerators, coffee makers and everything else. And super-economical communication modules are what you need for the Internet of things.

The principle underlying the operation of such modules is very original: communication modules of a new type do not generate their own signal, but reflect the signal of the router.



Accordingly, the software can perceive the reflection of the signal as 1, and the signal skip as 0. Therefore, this is a standard binary code. This technology allows, among other things, the creation of sensors, chips and other miniature devices for the home (or for the human body) that do not consume energy at all and do not require recharging the batteries, will always be turned on and will always “communicate” with each other.

Now the bandwidth of the new modules is 3 Mbps at a distance of about 2.5 meters. Of course, this is less than that of active-power communication modules, but the “Internet of Things” is usually not needed anymore. A year ago, when the technology was just emerging, the bandwidth of the modules was only 2 KB / s.



Via cnet