A University of British Columbia graduate student has developed a way to opportunistically use television and radio channels to transmit cellular signals when systems are pushed beyond capacity.
The study published in the IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications journal, involved changing the shape of the wireless signal to be able to transmit on channels used for radio or television. The signal direction was then changed away from the original channel. By manipulating the cellular signal direction, calls and texts were transmitted to a receiver while avoiding any interference with the original radio and television signals.
Read more about the background of the study and how it evolved.
