HOUSE OF JAPAN
 
Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd developed a technology that enables to read out identification data (ID) by irradiating an object with light containing ID and taking video of the object with a smartphone camera.
 
The company aims to commercialize the technology in fiscal 2015, expecting that it will be used for transmitting information about an item displayed in a store, showing guidance about an exhibit, presenting descriptions of a historic building, etc.
 
ID is added by changing the color of light being emitted from an LED lamp in a way that human eyes cannot see any changes but even a smartphone camera with a frame rate of only 30fps can read out the ID by taking video for two to three seconds. The data transmission speed is 10bps. Fujitsu Laboratories' previous visual light communication technology transmits data with light flickering at high speeds and does not support smartphone cameras.
 
The light containing ID is reflected from an object and reaches the smartphone camera. The ID is decoded by the smartphone after being corrected so that, even when part of the light is absorbed by the object, the ID can be transmitted. As long as the object is not completely black (perfectly black body), ID can be read out even from light reflected from black paper, Fujitsu Laboratories said.