Faster and safer internet connections thanks to light

Li-Fi (Light Fidelity) is already a reality, it works thanks to light bulbs and the spectrum of light.

The pandemic confirmed the importance of technological infrastructure in our life. Forced to quarantine, the demand for online services and content, for work, study and entertainment, has increased, as well as the number of people who have simultaneously used the network. The system shook, but it held up.

However, we need to reflect on how to enhance technological infrastructures, how to increase network access and how to improve connection speed. On this last point, light can help us, thanks to ‘Li-Fi’, a technology that uses part of the visible light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum to transmit information at very high speeds.

The Li-Fi connection is similar to WiFi, but it is faster, more secure and of greater capacity. Use LED lighting fixtures and bulbs as access points instead of base radio stations and wireless routers. Each light socket can potentially become a Li-Fi access point and, considering that there are about 40 billion light sockets in the world, the opportunities to meet the ever growing demand for fast and reliable connectivity are enormous.

Li-Fi will be able to compensate for the security limits that other technologies often suffer from. Since the light, the carrier of the Li-Fi connection, cannot pass through walls, the transmitted data is not accessible by a resident, company or anyone else who is nearby, which offers much higher privacy.

Li-Fi users can also host a private wireless network at home that is not connected to the Internet. A table lamp or a pendant lamp can discreetly contain the most important digital information (photos, documents, videos), accessible only thanks to the lighting. A real “safe”.

Li-Fi connectivity not only increases productivity levels, but also supports innovative and high bandwidth applications such as autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, edge computing and virtual reality,

The digital age requires “universal” connectivity that does not compromise speed or security. By incorporating a Li-Fi component into the devices, the greatest obstacle to IoT and Building Automation development can be overcome.

Li-Fi is at the heart of an evolving connectivity ecosystem that includes the spectrum of radio frequencies. It is not an alternative to Wi-Fi, but a complement. This ecosystem can guarantee the connectivity needed for the digital world of today and the near future.