Abstract
A method is described for one-way optical data transfer that may be used to configure electronic devices, such as wearable devices or smartwatches, which may lack certain input hardware like cameras or have displays where manual data entry is less practical. The system can employ a transmitter application on a device with a display (e.g., a smartphone, personal computer, or tablet) to encode data into a modulated optical signal, for example, a flashing pattern of light and dark areas. An encoding scheme, such as Manchester coding, may be used to generate a self-clocking signal. A corresponding receiver service on a target device can utilize a built-in light sensor, for example an ambient light sensor or a photoplethysmography sensor, to read the optical signal. Data can be structured into packets that may include a preamble, a header, and a payload. To aid in verifying data integrity, the payload may also include an error-detecting code, such as a cyclic redundancy check checksum. This approach can facilitate unauthenticated, at-scale device provisioning and configuration without a need for device pairing, user accounts, or additional hardware.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Wuest, Brandon, "One-Way Optical Data Transfer Using a Screen and a Light Sensor", Technical Disclosure Commons, (October 15, 2025)
https://www.tdcommons.org/dpubs_series/8730