Omnidirectional Visible Light Communication and Broadcasting Based on LED Beacon Light

Beacon lights serve as traffic lights for ships, which are essential devices for nighttime navigation in maritime transportation. In addition to illumination, LED beacon signaling lights have the potentials to serve as transmitters for visible light communication (VLC), enabling message broadcasting for smart navigation. In this work, we demonstrate an omnidirectional visible light communication system for long-distance data transmission using commercially available beacon light. A photomultiplier tube (PMT) based receiver has been developed to enable a long-range communication. Experimental results suggest that such system is capable to broadcast up to 5 kilometers with a data rate of 1600 bps. The feasibility of integrating visible light communication into navigation lighting infrastructure has been validated.