Ashutosh Sabharwal (via Rice University)

Full duplex Wireless Communication means getting your cake while you're eating it too. Ashutosh Sabharwal, a brilliant professor from Rice University, has made an amazing breakthrough in wireless data communications world of possibilities. The concept is like two people screaming at the same time in a large arena very far away from each other, but how can they hear each other? The answer is canceling out the sound of the screams coming from the sender so that the only sound they can hear is the sound of the other person's voice.

Sabharwal explained, "We send two signals such that they cancel each other at the receiving antenna -- the device ears. The canceling effect is purely local, so the other node can still hear what we're sending." These extra antennas send out canceling frequencies from the sending receiver.

Sabharwal continued, "We repurposed antenna technology called MIMO, which are common in today's devices. MIMO stands for 'multiple-input multiple-output' and it uses several antennas to improve overall performance. We took advantage of the multiple antennas for our full-duplex scheme, which is the main reason why all wireless carriers are very comfortable with our technology."

Rice University's idea was conceived and tested some months ago.

Now the team is back with a new goal, Sabharwal stated that their technology could be added to all cell towers, and no additional structures will be needed.  They have already "attracted the attention of just about every wireless company in the world." No wonder, the possibility of doubling the data throughput is quite exciting.

This technology will not be available until carriers upgraded their speed to "4 1/2G" or "5G" speeds, but the team is hopeful that this will be available in the next couple of years. Sabharwal is head of the WARP project at Rice University the acronym WARP stands for wireless open-access research platform. This enables them to be able to experience full-duplex wireless communication.

Eavesdropper

Announced as ‘ground-breaking’, a new wireless sensor system for industrial measurement and control has been announced by the Deeter Group.

At the centre of the new system is the simple-to-use basestation, designed to receive data from remote wireless devices such as the Deeter liquid vertical sensor (LVCS-RF). The basestation converts remote sensor input signals into industry standard process outputs. The basestation acts as the coordinator for an IEEE 802.15.4 wireless sensor network. It operates on one of 16 radio frequency channels available in the 2.4GHz ISM band. The high-power transceiver can achieve a range of greater than 1km, subject to local environmental factors. The internationally recognised IEEE 802.15.4 protocol allows several wireless sensor networks to share the same wireless spectrum without interference.

The basestation provides four open-collector transistor outputs which may be used to drive external relays for pumps and alarms or Deeter’s dual-level controller. Continuous analogue sensor data such as liquid level is output using a 4 to 20mA current-loop driver which enables interfacing with industrial process controllers or the Deeter Group’s range of current-loop indicators. A serial communications channel provides full-duplex RS232 and half-duplex RS485 transceivers allowing software to be developed for linking to PCs, data-loggers, PLCs or other proprietary equipment.

The basestation has three internal push-button switches and a 2-line by 16-character LCD. The buttons are accessible with the lid removed and are used in conjunction with the display to select installation options during initial setup. Once the system has been installed it will continue to operate without any further need for user intervention. The Base Station is housed in a rugged ABS enclosure with an external antenna. It has cable glands for power input and signal outputs and is supplied with an external, wall mounted, universal AC input power supply.

The LVCS-RF is designed to measure a continuous liquid level and transmit this information by radio to a Deeter wireless basestation at regular intervals. The device is battery powered and transmits wireless sensor data using the IEEE802.15.4 protocol operating in the 2.4GHz frequency band. The transmission range is up to 1Km in ideal line-of-sight conditions. The operating temperature range is -20C to +70C.

The LVCS-RF circuitry is housed in an IP65 rated die-cast aluminium head with an external antenna. An optional 3m extension lead and bracket are available for mounting the antenna in a position more favourable to wireless communication should the need arise. The sensor circuit is fitted inside a food industry standard 316L stainless steel tube attached to the head, with a 55mm magnetic ball-float. Standard sensing lengths are 250mm, 500mm, 750mm and 1m. Custom lengths and materials are available on request, says the company.

Add a little art-deco, some solar panels, and a special battery and starts inductively charging devices. Panasonic is releasing a small charging table, which looks like something that belongs at a coffee shop, sometime this year in Japan. The key to this table, no need for 3rd party adapters and accessories. The inductive charging coupling circuit will be built into the battery. Place a phone on the table, it will charge. Place a bare battery on the table, it will also charge. Panasonic may produce batteries for the world's most popular phone to work with their table, and the tech may be licensed out. The solar panels allow the table to be moved anywhere. However, in most cases outdoor tables have umbrellas over them. However, some indoor light energy could be recovered by these tables.

The table was demonstrated at the Retail Tech Expo in London. Another example of the new environmental conscious Japan.

Eavesdropper

Two way, simultaneous, wireless communications over a single channel has been demonstrated by Stanford's researching engineers Jung Il Choi, Mayank Jain, and Kannan Srinivasan.

"Textbooks say you can't do it," said Philip Levis, assistant professor of computer science and of electrical engineering. "The new system completely reworks our assumptions about how wireless networks can be designed." But wait, I can talk and listen on my cell phone! The research team claims the way companies achieve this effect is much more costly and cumbersome than there method.

Transmission of a radio signal is much more powerful than what the device needs to listen to. Levis explains, "When a radio is transmitting, its own transmission is millions, billions of times stronger than anything else it might hear [from another radio], It's trying to hear a whisper while you yourself are shouting." They defeated this issue with a simple idea: "What if radios could do the same thing our brains do when we listen and talk simultaneously: screen out the sound of our own voice?" Similar to noise cancelling headphones, the transmitter filters out what it is sending. Immediately the incoming signal can be heard.

Levis explains a major use of the technology in the future, " With current systems, if two aircraft try to call the control tower at the same time on the same frequency, neither will get through. Levis says these blocked transmissions have caused aircraft collisions, which the new system would help prevent."

The now patented technology has the potential to double data rates in every communication system. The team continues to work towards extending the range and power of their device.

Eavesdropper

At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, German researchers demonstrated a mobile radio standard of LTE-Advanced video coding techique called Multiview Video Coding (MVC). The goal is 3D films on cell phones. Despite recent reports of children and adults having eye strain from using the Nintendo 3D gaming device the 3DS, Researchers  at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications,  Heinrich-Hertz-Institute, HHI in Berlin have decided to go ahead on this project. The have created a compression algorithm that works well with HD video. Thomas  Schierl is a scientist at the HHI explains, “MVC is used to pack  together the two images needed for the stereoscopic 3-D effect to  measurably reduce the film's bit rate,.The 2-D and 3-D bit streams  divided up by MVC can be prioritized for each user at the air interface  to support different services, thus opening up a completely new field  for business models.” A novelty or a new standard indeed, it's going to happen.

With Sprint possibly switching from WiMAX to LTE, this will most definitely be in our forecast.

Eavesdropper

A perimeter-protection system created by a team from the USC Viterbi School of Engineering took Best Paper prize at the IEEE Homeland Security Conference in November 2010, and is now moving to deployment at a Florida airport, while also being considered for further installations by the Transportation Security Administration.  This smart sensor system recognizes spatio-temporal sensor patterns of perimeter intrusion by foot, by fence, and by vehicle for the purpose of protecting remote fenced or virtual perimeters against unauthorized access or terrorist attack on TSA airport property. The system’s novel approach allows target intrusion sounds to be identified by users with specific needs. For example, at airports, the sensors were trained to ignore typical fence manipulation (kicking, leaning, shaking) by visitors who gather at end-of-runway fence lines and watch landings and take-offs. However, the system actively raises alerts if the fence is climbed or if someone attempts to breach the perimeter. In turn, the ground sensors ignore the presence of large jets, but raise alerts for human footsteps in unauthorized areas and can be programmed to either raise alerts or to simply report the presence of vehicles in certain protected areas. For more information please visit: http://viterbi.usc.edu/news/news/2011/smart-usc-fences.htm

Eavesdropper

OpenPicus, the italian open source platform made for wireless smart sensors and actuators, definitely takes off with a thick list of juicy news ready to be downloaded on 20th Jan 2011 (10am italian time)

The open source platform is mature and offers to the developers:

• The new IDE, easy to use and Free to download
• Software Framework: your Apps can control the functions of the Protocol and of hardware, but you don't need to be an expert of both.
• Apps Source Code (such as wireless Webserver)
• Video guide for the IDE and a Manual for the Framework
  
  

OpenPicus started in March 2010, it was just an idea and a Blog. Today FlyPort module (the first Wi-Fi smart module, AKA Picus) is more and more the core of lot of Wireless applications, from sensors to robotics. Very innovative the smart Campus program: they give FREE Starter kits for Universities.