Challenges and Opportunities of VLC Application in Intelligent Transportation Systems

Abstract

With the development of light emitting diodes (LEDs), the communication in visible light spectrum, visible light communication (VLC), becomes an alternative to the existing wireless technologies. Integration of VLC systems with intelligent transportation systems (ITS) can significantly improve many aspects of transportation and traffic. The use of unlicensed bandwidth and wider implementation of VLC LED lighting, both in infrastructure and in vehicles, provide an energy-efficient data transmission with sufficiently large data rates at low cost. The application of VLC systems is still at an early stage of the development. However, due to numerous advantages, the wider adoption of VLC systems is expected in near future. This chapter presents an analysis of the possibilities of VLC application in ITS scenarios. Main characteristics of VLC in ITS in terms of architecture, modulation and standardization are addressed. Some challenges and open issues are also emphasized.