Wireless communication system "Ambient Backscatter" capable of sending and receiving existing signals without battery

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The technology to wirelessly communicate without connecting with cables and so on is widely used from remote control of television to data transmission and reception of smart phone · tablet, but the engineers of Washington University enable wireless communication system without battery Developed.

Wireless devices go battery-free with new communication technique | UW Today
http://www.washington.edu/news/2013/08/13/wireless-devices-go-battery-free-with-new-communication-technique/

The newly developed communication system is "Ambient BackscatterThrough the device, you can do the same kind of communication as the one used in a TV, mobile phone, clock etc without a battery. The device itself is about one credit card in size and it is possible to convert it to information by transmitting and receiving radio waves from a radio tower with an antenna and reflecting signals to each other.


The system was held in Hong Kong on August 13Special Interest Group on Data Communication 2013It was announced at the conference and received the Best Paper.

The feature of the technology is that communication is carried out by manipulation by human being like the television remote control and where the signal used for existing communication can be used as it is.University of WashingtonAssociate professor Shyam Gollakota of computer science engineering says, "We can re-use the power supply and the communication medium already existing around us by wireless signal"Wearable computerIt is also expected to lead to the development of device applications such as device and self-sustaining sensor network.


An experiment was conducted to measure the signal reception distance from the radio tower to the device in an area including an obstacle in downtown Seattle and it was confirmed that communication was possible at a distance of 0.5 mile (about 800 m) to 6.5 mile (about 10 km) In addition to the signal from the radio tower, in addition to the signal communication between the devices, the signal of 1 kbit / s is 2.5 ft. (76.2 cm) away in the field and 1.5 ft (46 cm) in the apartment's room It has also been confirmed that radio waves can be caught sufficiently by distance. Since this amount of transmission is enough for sending and receiving text messages, it is also possible to reduce the battery consumption by incorporating the device of "Ambient Backscatter" into the smartphone.


From now on, how to use the Ambient Backscatter device that does not use the battery is considered to be embedded in buildings. For example, you can embed in a bridge permanently monitor the state of steel materials and concrete, and let a warning be issued when a crack occurs. Also, if it is a familiar place, if you install it along with a key, you can automatically send a message saying "I forgot my key!" Towards a mobile phone or smartphone even if I misplace it somewhere .



The engineers will further work on increasing Ambient Backscatter's communication distance and device capacity. Although it is not yet in the practical stage, it is a big merit that it is possible to use the current wireless signal without batteries, depending on future development results, the way of use and the way of presently popular devices may change greatly.