How can we make the Internet of Things a functional reality under the water? There are some that are convinced that by using light we can make this functionality happen via underwater optical communications. At present, there’s testing underway with simultaneous lightwave information and power transfer (SLIPT) configurations. These configurations transmit energy and data to underwater electronic devices. Recently, researchers conducted an experiment in which they were able to achieve an underwater, two-way transmission of data and power over 1.5 yards between a solar panel-equipped sensor and a receiver. The story that follows provides more details on how SLIPT actually works.
More than two-thirds of the world’s surface is covered by water. It plays an important role in our economic existence, including in major verticals such as oil and gas, shipping and tourism.
As the Internet of Things proliferates, questions arise as to how IoT will manifest itself underwater given that radio waves degrade over distance in seawater, and underwater acoustic communication (which does actually work okay) is easily eavesdropped on and isn’t stealthy.
