Visible Light Communication based text transmission using Arduino

Authors

  • V. Jeyalakshmi
  • S. Karthika
  • S. Praiselin Ida

Keywords:

Arduino-based Li-Fi, LED and LDR based text transmission, Li-Fi technology, Secure transmission, Text transmission using light

Abstract

Li-Fi (Light Fidelity) employs visible light for data transmission and offers advantages such as high throughput, low cost, compact hardware, and immunity to radio frequency interference. This work describes the design and implementation of a compact, low-cost Li-Fi system for wireless text transmission using off-the-shelf LEDs and an LDR (light-dependent resistor). The transmitter converts keypad input into 8-bit ASCII binary codes via an Arduino NANO, and then encodes the bits as rapid LED on/off pulses. A receiver consisting of an LDR and the receiver-side Arduino Nano senses the light variations, decodes the timing information back into the characters and presents recovered text on an LCD. The system is optimized for short, line-of-sight links and provides improved physical security compared with conventional RF links because visible light does not penetrate opaque barriers. Experimental evaluation demonstrated 100% text reconstruction accuracy over line-of-sight distances of 5–15 cm under standard indoor lighting, with signal degradation observed beyond 30 cm due to reduced LDR voltage swing and under high ambient illumination. Its simple architecture and inexpensive components make it suitable for environments where radio communication is restricted and for educational or prototyping applications exploring secure, short-range optical wireless communication.

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Published

2026-07-16

How to Cite

V. Jeyalakshmi, S. Karthika, & S. Praiselin Ida. (2026). Visible Light Communication based text transmission using Arduino. Advance Research in Communication Engineering and Its Innovations, 35–46. Retrieved from https://matjournals.net/engineering/index.php/ARCEI/article/view/3864