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Wireless networks may learn to live together by using energy pulses |
April 25, 2013
Researchers at the University of Michigan have invented a way for different wireless networks crammed into the same space to say "excuse me" to one another.Wi-Fi shares a frequency band with the popular Bluetooth and ZigBee systems, and all are often found in the same places together. But it's hard to prevent interference among the three technologies because they can't signal each other to coordinate the use of the spectrum. In addition, different generations of Wi-Fi sometimes fail to exchange coordination signals because they use wider or narrower radio bands. Both problems can slow down networks and break connections.Michigan computer science professor Kang Shin and graduate student Xinyu Zhang, now an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin, set out to tackle this problem in 2011. Last July, they invented GapSense, software that lets Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and ZigBee all send special energy pulses that can be used as traffic-control messages. GapSense is ready to implement in devices and access points if a standards body or a critical mass of vendors gets behind it, Shin said.Wi-Fi LANs are a data lifeline for phones, tablets and PCs in countless homes, offices and public places. Bluetooth is a slower but less power-hungry protocol typically used in place of cords to connect peripherals, and ZigBee is an even lower powered system found in devices for home automation, health care and other purposes.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2036333/wireless-networks-may-learn-to-live-together-by-using-energy-pulses.html#tk.rss_all
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