Li-Fi inventor Professor Herald Haas from University of Edinburgh, UK has been trying to convince the Indian government about the advantages of using Li-Fi integrated solar panels, according to a recent LiveMint report.

For smart solar panel projects, the professor’s team has been working on the receiver side to assist users in acquiring an off-the-shelf solar panel that can become a multifunctional device that can harvests energy and also work as a data receiver for Li-Fi signals, said Haas. Integrating the two technologies could help rural communities in India become connected to the Internet via solar panels, and could propel the South Asian country’s path to becoming Digital India.

In the interview, Haas also spoke about several developments in Li-Fi enabled lighting that the company was working on. His company Pure Li-Fi has been in talks with lighting brands about incorporating Li-Fi technology into lighting devices, and is currently working on several pilot projects in buildings and offices.

Pure Li-Fi has developed two methods for turning the ordinary off the shelf LED bulb into a high speed Internet connection portal. While both methods require the usage of additional microchips, the way it is implemented is slightly different. In the first method the company offers an additional Li-Fi box device that is connected to the LED bulb, and the second option offered is directly embedding the Li-Fi microchip into the bulb. According to Haas there are no compatibility issues at the moment, since the microchip can work with any brand or type of LED bulbs.

There has also been some improvement in the data transmission rate, with certain LEDs capable of achieving 100 gigabits (GB) per second. Normal LEDs sold by retailers, though that use a phosphorous coating have a lower transmission speed of 100 MB per second from a single bulb, said Haas.

Although, Li-Fi technology is still unable to penetrate walls and be used in different rooms there are certain advantages. Haas noted data could be contained within the room, and it would be more difficult to eavesdrop or transmit data to an adjacent room. Quite ideal for managing confidential data. Objects obstructing the light beams are also no longer a big issue, as long as reflected light is adequate enough to reach the Li-Fi device, said Haas.

For more details about how Haas started off in Li-Fi research and business, please see the Livemint article.