Spatial Interference Detection for Mobile Visible Light Communication

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel spatial interference detection method for mobile VLC that leverages the rolling shutter effect to enable parallel data transmission, significantly increasing bandwidth and source identification capabilities.

Contribution

The paper proposes a new 2D interference detection technique that enhances bandwidth and source isolation in mobile VLC systems using smartphone cameras.

Findings

Increased bandwidth through 2D interference detection

Effective identification of closely spaced light sources

Protocol enabling easy interference management

Abstract

Taking advantage of the rolling shutter effect of CMOS cameras in smartphones is a common practice to increase the transfered data rate with visible light communication (VLC) without employing external equipment such as photodiodes. VLC can then be used as replacement of other marker based techniques for object identification for Augmented Reality and Ubiquitous computing applications. However, the rolling shutter effect only allows to transmit data over a single dimension, which considerably limits the available bandwidth. In this article we propose a new method exploiting spacial interference detection to enable parallel transmission and design a protocol that enables easy identification of interferences between two signals. By introducing a second dimension, we are not only able to significantly increase the available bandwidth, but also identify and isolate light sources in close proximity.