Last week we started a mini blog series on emerging technologies. We looked at three trends highligh Register for a free membership or log in to read the rest of this content. Register for a free membership or log in to read the rest of this content. Share This Story, Choose Your Platform! A Construction Exec's Next Move 8/31/2021 0 Comments A Construction Exec's Next Move

We've heard it for years: 5G is coming. And yet, while high-speed 5G internet has indeed slowly been rolling out in a smattering of countries across the globe, many barriers remain that have prevented widespread adoption. One issue is that we can't get faster internet speeds without more efficient ways of delivering wireless signals. The general trend has been to simply add antennas to either the transmitter (i.e., Wi-Fi access points and cell towers) or the receiver (such as a phone or laptop). But that's grown difficult to do as companies increasingly produce smaller and smaller devices, including a new wave of "internet of things" systems.

'Smart wallpaper' that can boost WiFi signal in your home by up to ten times and allow for even smaller internet-connected devices has been developed by MIT researchers. A team of researchers from the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, has found a way to create a surface that can reflect and enhance wireless signals. They say this means WiFi can be added to devices that are currently too small to make it viable, or make already-connected devices'more elegant'. This could allow for tiny sensors to detect indoor pollution levels, smaller smart speakers or even'biomedical devices' inside the human body, according to the study's authors. 'Smart wallpaper' that can boost WiFi signal in your home by up to ten times and allow for even smaller internet-connected devices is developed by MIT researchers The issue with ever-smaller smart technology is that smaller devices have smaller wireless antennas that struggle to maintain a good signal.