Channel Model and Capacity for Differential Display-Camera Communication

For short range data transmission, Visible Light Communication (VLC), in which data is transmitted in the visible light spectrum, is a very interesting alternative to classical radio frequency transmission. Display-camera communication is one variant of such VLC systems, using displays as transmitters and cameras as receivers. The properties and possibilities of these channels are currently subject to research. In this paper, a model for the display-camera channel is presented. The model is then adapted to differential display-camera communication, which enables an imperceptible data transmission while still using the transmitting display for image content presentation. With this model, the available channel capacity is derived and determined for a selection of measured display-camera combinations. Knowledge of the available channel capacity will help designing and optimizing forward error correction procedures for the differential display-camera channel.