Testbed for a LiFi system integrated in streetlights

Abstract

In this paper, a functional LiFi real-time testbed implemented on FPGAs is presented. The setup evaluates the performance of our design in a downlink scenario where the transmitter is embedded on the streetlights and a mobile phone's camera is used as receiver, therefore achieving the goal of lighting and communicating simultaneously. To validate the design, simulations of the whole system are performed. where simulations of the channel between streetlight and mobile device show the scope of the reflection in an outdoor environment. The measurements are carried out to characterize the modulator, in particular the FPGA resources and latency due to the encoder blocks. In addition the feasibility of the communication function in presence of the ambient light is verified.