A team of UW CSE and EE researchers introduce Passive Wi-Fi, a system that can generate Wi-Fi transmissions using 10,000 times less power than conventional methods. With this system, Wi-Fi signals can be transmitted at rates up to 11 megabits per second--rates that are lower than maximum Wi-Fi speeds but are 11 times faster than Bluetooth--and decoded on any of the billions of devices with Wi-Fi connectivity. With Passive Wi-Fi, we can envision a true "Internet of Things" in which household devices and wearable sensors will be able to communicate using Wi-Fi without worrying about power.
