Researchers have managed to see objects and read letters through walls using Wi-Fi signals. A revolutionary technology that fascinates as much as it frightens.
This is a scientific experiment which could well mark a turning point in the history of new technologies (not so new after all). Imagine: you activate a machine with a screen, you point it at a wall, and the objects behind are gradually displayed. Worthy of x-ray vision of superman No ? And many scientists have succeeded. To achieve this, they used… Wi-Fi signalsquite simply.
The system is as follows. Three Wi-Fi transmitters purchased commercially send signals into a room. On the other side of the wall, receivers are mounted on a driverless machine that simulates a Wi-Fi reception grid as she moves. The receivers measure the signal strength and the latter is used to form the images. The whole is based on the Keller’s geometric theory of diffraction. Without going into details, it is what allows us tointerpret what might be behind the wall.
Wi-Fi signals allow objects to be seen through walls
The researchers thus succeeded in read the word “BELIEVE” written on the other side of a partition, the letters being revealed one by one. It doesn’t seem like much, but it was thought that reading the English alphabet through a wall using Wi-Fi signals was impossible. Blame it on the intricate details of the lettering. Scientists have also managed to see the outlines of objects contained in the test piece. The team specifies that it used the standard 802.11n Wi-Fialso called Wi-Fi 4but can operate its system with Wi-Fi 6 or Wi-Fi 7.
The technology could be used forcrowd analysis or theidentification of individuals for example, without the people concerned knowing it of course. An important point which raises the question of the possible excesses of such progress. Diverted, it would be used for cybercriminals even to the authorities who are a little too zealous. It is of course too early for a generalization of the process, but we will necessarily have to think about these implications as it improves.
Source: TechRadar