The project of the artificial intelligence Lab Massachusetts Institute of technology (MIT CSAIL) called RFocus in the accompanying documents described as the “smart surface”, consisting of more than 3,000 tiny antennas, performing the function of a peculiar lens. The only question in this case is the focus of the signals to the correct device.
The creators of miniature wireless electronics are constantly faced with a serious problem – lack of space for placement of antennas. It aims to address project RFocus. At the stage of experiments using a prototype managed to boost the signal 10 times and doubling the throughput of the channel.
The team under the leadership of Aruna Venkat has involved an array of more than 3,000 antennas with appropriate software, as a result of a significant increase in signal strength. Its main advantages are the low price (one mini-antenna is only a few cents) and small compared with traditional systems the energy consumption.
While researchers have no specific plans regarding the future use of RFocus. Most likely, he will find its use in “smart” homes and businesses of the future. Also, this technology can be useful for solving some of the challenges of future 5G networks.
Source — MIT