Three Most Recent Wireless Technologies

Three Most Recent Wireless
Technologies
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1 Introduction
With the Technology evolving at very fast pace, wireless technologies definitely secure a front row
in this evolution. From wireless communication technologies to wireless charging of smart devices
and Cars [1], narrowing the list to just three wireless technologies seems unfair to those left out.
Wireless communication alone has dozens of new technologies, some well know; NFC & Wi-Fi
Direct, 5G, RFID, while others such as WiGig / Wi-Fi 6, Li-Fi, ZigBee, RuBee and DASH7 are
starting to get their way into the mainstream.
In this research, much focus was diverted towards 5G NR, Li-Fi and ZigBee. This is mainly
because those three wireless technologies operate differently.
2 Researched Wireless Technologies
2.1 5G mmWave NR
The coming of the Fifth Generation (5G) of mobile communication networks is definitely inevitable
as it is foreseen to be the game changer when it comes to the growth of Internet of Things (IoT).
5G millimeter-wave (mmWave) New Radio (NR) presents fast transfer speed and ultra-reliability,
while maintaining a lower latency and increased connectivity [2].
4G – 5G Comparison Table
Feature 4G 5G
Speed 200-300 Mbps 1-10GBps
Latency 300 milliseconds 3 milliseconds
Beamforming [3] No Yes
Powers IoT Partially Fully
Ultra Reliable Partially Fully
mmWave [4] No Yes, up to 40GBs speed boost
MIMO [4] Trial Massive
Usage in Real Time Application:
 Autonomous vehicles [5] will largely make use of 5G NR to not only communicate with
traffic lights, but also process signals from other nearby cars. This will drastically reduce the
time we spend in traffic jam and accidents on our roads as a result of human errors. 5G will
utilize Beamforming to identify the most efficient data-delivery route to a particular user or
another machine.
 Internet of Things (IoT): 5G is expected to power all smart sensors and devices by default in
the near future.
5G Strengths:
 Great data rates of 10-46 GBPS
 Low Latency of about 3ms, hence faster connections and efficiency
 Utilizes of MIMO to achieve even faster speeds
 Utilizes Beamforming to minimize packet loss as a result of path loss
5G Weaknesses:
 Costly implementation and infrastructure as 5G signals need after every 250-300 meters.
 5G is currently still in development stage hence not readily available to the public
 Negative speculation from as portion of the community on the Health Side Effects of 5G [6].

5G Security Issues:
 Prone to Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) Attack: in its current form, 5G communication can be
intercepted by an attacker, to steal the data [8]. This is largely attributed to the fact that 5G
security standards are yet to be realized. Given that 5G will be powering IoT, autonomous
cars included, a proper structured MitM attack can easily take over the attack between the
cars, thus misleading them to make wrong decisions. Assassination by autonomous car
accident and medication overdose dispensation will be some of the new tactics available for
the bad guys.
2.2 Li-Fi
Light Fidelity (Li-Fi) is perceived as Wi-Fi on steroids. However, instead of using radio waves,
Li-Fi makes use of visible light as its transmission medium. A photodiode can then receive the data
for conversion to binary format before processing.
Figure 1How Li-Fi Works, as from MakeUseOf.com [9].
Usage in Real Time Application:
 Li-Fi has great speeds hence appropriate for Artificial Reality and Virtual Reality.
 Internet of things can also take advantage of this wireless technology
Li-Fi Strengths:
 Cheaper setup cost has existing LED lights can be used as transmitters within the building.
 High speeds of up to 224 Gbps [7]
 Currently more established and stable than 5G
 Light can reach places where radio wave cannot
 Less prone to leakage as light does not pass through walls like Wi-Fi does.
Li-Fi Weaknesses:
 Requires line of sight as light cannot pass through walls and opaque objects.
 Not so many devices are designed to support Li-Fi, when compared to Wi-Fi.
 Lack of unified standards is hindering global take off of Li-Fi.