‘Wi-Fi range of existing devices can be significantly increased with software protocol’

Scientists at the private American Brigham Young University in Utah have developed a software protocol that allows existing Wi-Fi devices to send and receive signals at a much greater distance.

According to the researchers, no new hardware is needed to increase the signal range of IoT devices. Test results would have shown that it is possible to install, for example, a door sensor or a motion detector sixty meters further from the access point. According to Phil Lundrigan, an assistant professor in the university’s computer department, this is achieved entirely by software and can be installed on all WiFi-enabled devices via a simple update.

This is a new protocol, called On-Off Noise Power Communication, which is programmed directly on the existing Wi-Fi protocol. Wifi normally needs at least 1Mbit/s to not lose the signal, but with the researchers’ onpc protocol, the signal can still exist at just 1 bit per second.

To test this, the researchers adapted the transmitter in a Wi-Fi sensor to transmit wireless noise in addition to the data. This sensor was programmed to produce a series of ones and zeros, essentially turning the signal on and off in a specific pattern. The Wi-Fi router was able to distinguish between this pattern and ambient noise from cell phones, computers, and televisions. This way the router knew that the sensor was still sending something, even if no data was received.

According to Lundrigran, 1 bit of information is enough for many Wi-Fi devices that only need to send this on/off message. During the investigation, they implemented the onpc protocol, along with an application called Stayin’ Alive to manage the protocol. This increased the range of any iot device available on the market by 67 meters compared to the range of standard WiFi.

According to the researchers, the protocol developed is not intended to replace Wi-Fi or LoRa; it is an addition to the current wifi. Only if Stayin’ Alive detects that the Wi-Fi device has lost the connection, the data transmission starts via the onpc protocol. Because it is only necessary to transmit energy and receive the noise measurements, the scientists believe that this can in principle also be applied to LoRa, mobile signals and Bluetooth.

The research team presented the research in Mexico at the International Conference on Mobile Computing and Networking.