Novel Architecture for Efficient Implementation of Dimmable VPPM in VLC Lightings

Abstract

In this paper, a new architecture is proposed to achieve complexity efficiency in implementing variable pulse position modulation (VPPM). VPPM, specified in IEEE 802.15.7, can support wireless communication and dimming control simultaneously using visible light. The proposed architecture is based on the VPPM signal property in which the transition point of the modulated output is obtained by counting the sample index and comparing it to both the assigned dimming factor and the transmitting data. Therefore, the proposed architecture can be composed of simple logics, including a counter, a comparator, and an inverter, all of which are insensitive to the dimming resolution in contrast to a conventional codeword-table method. This paper describes the verification of the proposed algorithm through a register-transfer level implementation of the codeword and proposed architectures. In comparison with the codeword-table method, the proposed method gains a nine-fold complexity reduction at a 1% dimming-step resolution.