An Integrated Visible Light and Power Line Communication Approach for Real Time Weather Parameter Monitoring

A hybrid communication system uses different heterogeneous components to solve the issues with the last mile and last inch connectivity. In this paper, a hybrid communication system using visible light and power line is developed. The same is used as a sensor network for monitoring of weather parameters in an indoor setting. The performance of the system both individually and as hybrid are found out in terms of the bit error rate (BER). It is seen that mostly, the power line part adds to the BER and the visible light section allows extended angular coverage. The system enables signal transfer via power line through a maximum distance of 13 m and visible light via 5 m through an angular coverage of 20o. The error in the monitored parameters namely temperature and humidity is negligible compared to the variations in the monitored parameter. The results will be used for future development of an efficient hybrid communication technique for extended usage.