“Lights-off” visible light communications

In order to implement visible light communications (VLC) through indoor lighting, a set of challenges arise due to conflicting requirements from the two missions. In this paper we examine one of these challenges: how to communicate when the lights are “off.” We investigate VLC with limits on transmit power, which we define to be low enough so that users will accept that the lights are in their “off” state. We argue that these limits vary based on levels of natural illumination already present in the environment. Our analysis shows that we can meet the limits while providing robust data coverage by using VLC devices of low complexity. The result is an important step toward ensuring acceptance and adoption of VLC technology.