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An Interference-Aware Adaptive Frequency Channel Selection Transceiver for Low Power Human Body Communication
IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Circuits and Systems
|August 14, 2026
Summary
This study introduces an adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) transceiver for human body communication (HBC) that mitigates interference. This novel approach enhances data rates and energy efficiency for wearable sensors.
Area of Science:
- Electrical Engineering
- Biomedical Engineering
- Wearable Technology
Background:
- Conventional wireless systems for wearable sensors face challenges like body shadowing and high power consumption.
- Human Body Communication (HBC) offers an alternative using the body's conductivity but struggles with dynamic channels and interference in the sub-10 MHz range.
- Existing HBC transceivers use narrowband operation to reduce interference, limiting data rates.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an interference-aware adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) transceiver for HBC operating below 10 MHz.
- To improve data rates and energy efficiency while mitigating interference in wearable body sensor networks.
- To enable autonomous frequency hopping control and real-time channel assessment for robust communication.
Main Methods:
- An on-off keying (OOK) transceiver with an integrated microcontroller unit (MCU) was designed and fabricated in 65-nm CMOS.
- Adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) was implemented as an interference-driven adaptive channel selection mechanism.
- The transceiver was tested for data rates, signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) tolerance, bit error rate (BER) improvement, and energy efficiency.
Main Results:
- The AFH transceiver achieved data rates from 22-360 kbps with tolerance to -33 dB SIR at a 10-3 BER.
- A 40x improvement in BER was observed compared to single-frequency operation at a maximum distance of 180 cm.
- Energy efficiency ranged from 62.2-79.5 pJ/bit, promising extended battery life for wearable devices.
Conclusions:
- The proposed AFH HBC transceiver effectively mitigates interference in the sub-10 MHz regime, enhancing performance for wearable applications.
- The integrated MCU enables autonomous operation, real-time channel assessment, and direct sensor interfacing.
- This technology offers a secure, energy-efficient, and high-performance solution for future distributed wearable systems.
