Scientists suggest using people “as antennas” for 6G networks through bracelets

Despite the fact that networks are only being introduced 5G In much of the world, researchers and scientists are already thinking about a higher network: 6G.

This type of connection will have big changes as it will not use radio waves but alternatives such as visible light communication (VLC) to transmit information, although this has issues such as residual energy. The solution for scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst could be humans themselves, acting as antennas.

people are like antennas

VLC is like a “wireless” version of fiber. It uses incredibly thin plastic or glass filaments to transmit information about flashes of light. These cables are extremely small, but also extremely fragile.

In this new initiative, “instead of using radio signals to transmit information wirelessly, VLC uses light from LEDs that can turn on and off up to a million times per second,” says Jie Xiong, professor of computer science and computer science at UMass. Amherst. “Anything that has a camera, such as our smartphones, tablets or laptops, can be a receiver.”

Before anyone comes up with a conspiracy theory, this plan does not require chips or implants. People could use wristbands or other devices to expand the signal, the researchers said.

They developed an antenna with helical copper wire to collect leakage in the form of radio waves (RF).

The researchers experimented with all kinds of surfaces and wire thicknesses. By placing the coil on plastic, cardboard, wood and steel, and turning phones and other digital devices on and off, fellow researcher Minghao Cui attempted to wrap the coil around the human body.

The results show that humans are actually the best vehicle for amplifying the coil’s ability to collect filtered RF energy. Attaching a coil to a person collected up to 10 times more energy than simply using an uncoated coil.

bracelets 6G

Based on these results, the researchers created a low-cost wearable device called “Bracelet+which people can wear on the top of their forearms. The study authors note that they can even modify it to function as a ring, belt, anklet, or necklace, although a bracelet seems to work better for energy harvesting.

“Design is cheap, less than fifty cents,” the authors of the study note. “But Bracelet+ It can reach microwatts, which is enough to support many sensors, such as on-body health monitoring sensors, which require little power to operate due to their low sample rate and long sleep duration.”

“Ultimately, we want to be able to harvest residual energy from all kinds of sources to power the technologies of the future,” Xiong concludes.

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