Li-Fi based Smart Retail

This project demonstrates the use of Li-Fi technology to transmit bit patterns using a blinking LED, and receive patterns using the Light Sensor. It also demonstrates the security specific applications of Tilt Sensor, Temperature Sensor and Piezo Electric Sensor. A Web Server was setup on the DragonBoard™ 410c development board, so that all the above features can be handled wirelessly via Wi-Fi. The project also consists of a Bluetooth Chat app that can chat with the DragonBoard 410c to send commands to it to operate the sensors.

Objective

This project aims to use Li-Fi technology to enhance a customer experience in a retail environment. Customers can use their smartphones to quickly look up product information and reviews. Each product in stores and exhibitions are generally illuminated, and this light can be designed to transmit data. For this project, we are making use of LEDs to transmit 2 binary sequences at different frequencies. These sequences can be decoded by the customer’s smartphone, and it can be designed to open different webpages for different products.

Why use Li-Fi?

The advantages of Li-Fi include:

• Congestion Reduction: Li-Fi uses light waves which are 10,000 times more plentiful than radio-frequencies, which helps reduce congestion.
• NO EMI: Li-Fi does not cause electromagnetic interference, so it is designed to be safe for use in sensitive environments like aviation and hospitals.
• Safety: Li-Fi makes use of visible light spectrum which is designed to be safer than radio waves.
• Security and speed: Li-Fi is designed to be less susceptible to hacking and can provide speeds up to 224 Gbps.

Where can Li-Fi technology be used?

• Smart Lighting
• Mobile Connectivity
• Hazardous Environments
• Hospitals and Healthcare
• Aviation
• Vehicles, Transportation, and Location based Services
• Interactive toys

Build / Assembly Instructions

Materials Required / Parts List / Tools

• DragonBoard 410c
• 12V wall adapter
• Arduino board
• Tilt sensor
• Temperature sensor

Source Code / Source Examples / Application Executable

• Source code

Additional Resources

• Coursera IoT Course