Infrared Connection – How to Send and Receive Files Using Infrared
It is possible for you to use an infrared connection to send or receive a folder, document or picture from one device to another. For instance, you can send a folder or document from your PC, computer or laptop to a smartphone or other mobile device that has an infrared capability, or you can even receive a document from the mobile device. If your digital camera has infrared capability, then you can send images, photos or pictures from the camera to your computer quite easily.
Just like a TV remote control, infrared devices use very high frequency light to communicate between two infrared enabled devices. Just as a remote control must be pointed directly to the TV, infrared likewise requires a direct line of sight to reach another computer or device.
Important Note on Infrared Connection
Most computer makers no longer add infrared connection capability to their computers because of the advent of wireless file transfer that is now often done with Bluetooth technology. However, many older version of computers especially laptops and mobile devices have in-built infrared capability. If you do not see a category named Infrared devices in Device Manager, it means that your computer probably does not have infrared capability or is not infrared enabled. In order to be sure, look for infrared ports which are openings covered with black or dark red plastic on the front of your laptop or computer, or you can check with the manufacturer.
How to Send a Document or Folder
Put the two devices in close range and point the infrared ports, the openings covered with black or dark red plastic, toward each other, and wait a few seconds for the Infrared icon to appear in the on your computer.
- Click the ‘Infrared icon’ in the notification area of your computer and select the document or folder that you want to send, and then click ‘Send’.
- On the receiving device or computer, you will be asked to accept or reject the sent folder or document.
Important Note on Infrared Connection
If the steps listed above do not work, you can then try this:
Click the ‘Start button’, click ‘Control Panel’, type ‘infrared’ in the search box, and then, in the list of results that appear, click ‘Infrared’.
Make sure the ‘Allow others to send files to my computer using infrared communications’ check box is selected or ticked, and then click ‘OK’.
How to Receive a Picture via Infrared Connection
- Click the ‘Start button’, click ‘Control Panel’, type ‘infrared’ in the search box, and then, in the list of results that appear, click ‘Infrared’.
- Click on the ‘Image Transfer’ tab, and then select the ‘Allow digital cameras to use infrared to transfer images directly to my computer’ check box.
- Put the two devices in close range and point the infrared ports toward each other.
- Wait until the Infrared icon appears in the notification area of your computer and wait for the camera to recognize the presence of the new infrared device.
- On the camera, press ‘Send’ or ‘Transfer’ or check the information or manual that came with your camera to find out how to start the transfer. When the images, pictures or photos appear on the computer, choose the location where you want to store or save them.
How to Receive a Document, Folder, or Picture
When you receive a document, folder or picture through an infrared connection, a dialog box will be displayed on the receiving computer.
Click ‘Yes’ or ‘Yes to all’ if there are multiple items to accept the sent document, folder or picture.
Infrared (IR) is a band of electromagnetic radiation that extends above the red visible light spectrum. It can be used to transmit data without interfering with radio communication such as Wi-Fi, Zigbee, and Bluetooth.
IR LEDs emit pulses of infrared radiation that represent data bits. They can be flashed on and off to send different logic states.
Is Infrared Connection Still Relevant Today?
Infrared communication is still in use today, notably in TV and DVD remote controls. It’s also used for home-entertainment control protocols like RC-5 and SIRC, for wireless mice and keyboards, in some laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and portable gaming consoles. It’s also used to send data over a short distance via the IrLAN specification and the binary object exchange or OBEX standard.
In spite of its continued use, infrared has been largely superseded by Bluetooth. The stability of a Bluetooth connection allows for multiple devices to be connected simultaneously, and the technology’s security protocols keep your data out of the hands of hackers. Infrared is a line-of-sight technology, and it can be easily disrupted by obstructions, interference and environmental changes.
It’s also not very useful for wide-area wireless communication, as it does not penetrate walls well. That’s why you need to be able to keep the two devices within range of each other. Bluetooth is able to overcome these obstacles through frequency hopping, which uses 79 different frequencies for each transmission, and doesn’t allow any of them to overlap for more than a microsecond. This lets your devices communicate with each other without interruption and across significant distances, even in separate rooms. The same technique is employed by astronomers to study molecular clouds, stars and planets that can’t be seen with the naked eye. Infrared imaging is also used in weather satellites to depict ocean eddies and vortices, which helps the shipping industry, and by farmers and fishermen to improve crop harvesting, reduce frost damage and increase catch rates.
How is Infrared Radiation Produced?
Infrared radiation is produced by light that reflects off of the surface of an object. Like any other form of electromagnetic radiation, IR energy can have both wave and particle properties. For instance, a photon of IR can carry momentum and exert radiation pressure. It is also able to change its state from potential energy to kinetic energy and vice versa.
The range of infrared wavelengths extends from the nominal red edge of the visible spectrum at 700 nanometers (nm) to 0.1 millimeter (1 mm), and beyond that into the microwave portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Infrared radiation has many uses, including deliberate heating of objects and detecting objects that are opaque to other types of radiation such as radio waves or visible light.
Infrared transmission requires a direct line of sight between two devices to be effective. In order to send a document or folder from one computer to another, the infrared ports (openings covered with black or dark red plastic on the front of a laptop or tablet) on each device must be pointed at the other.
The Raspberry Pi has a built-in infrared receiver and transmitter that support IrDA protocols. The IrDA drivers and software allow it to communicate with a wide range of remote control devices. The LIRC program does the heavy lifting of interpreting and decoding IR input signals. When a LIRC config file is loaded, it maps certain raw binary values transmitted by an IR receiver into pre-configured button names that are recognized by the software.
Is Infrared an Ionizing Radiation?
Infrared radiation is emitted when the infrared sensor of a device senses an infrared signal. The sensor converts this energy to an electrical current. The sensor is typically made from a semiconductor material such as silicon. This conversion is accomplished through a high-pass filter which retains the rapid pulsations of the infrared signal and filters out slow changes in the incoming waveform. Infrared can travel through most materials including air, water, glass, and plastic.
Infrared connection and transmission is used for short-range communication between computer peripherals such as printers and handheld organizers. They use a standard called IrDA (Infrared Data Association). IR transmission uses infrared LEDs to transmit information that is detected by an IR receiver. The IR receiver interprets the transmitted information and executes a command.
Some older laptop computers include an infrared transmitter and receiver. Verify that your laptop has this feature by locating the small red window on the back or side of the device, and consulting its documentation. You can also check by opening the “Device Manager” in Windows and looking for a category named “Infrared devices.” If you see such a category, your laptop has infrared capability.
Are There Still Infrared Enabled Devices Today?
While infrared may have lost ground to Bluetooth and other newer technologies, it is not obsolete. In fact, it is still being used in certain situations such as remote control and other small-scale data transfer applications. It is also still being used by astronomers to observe space objects that the human eye cannot see.
Infrared sensors are commonly found in electronic devices such as televisions, air conditioners, DSLR cameras, and projectors. It is an ideal choice for use in these applications because it can transmit data at a much faster rate than traditional wired connections. Moreover, it is a cost-effective technology for the transmission of audio and video signals.
However, despite the advantages of infrared sensors, they do have some disadvantages. For example, they can be hacked by hackers to establish covert channels for the leaked transmission of sensitive information. This is because IR sensors do not require any form of authentication or identification to transmit data, which makes them vulnerable to attacks.
Additionally, infrared connection sensors can only transmit data at a limited range, which means that they will stop working if you move too far away from the device. As such, it is important to test whether a smartphone has an IR sensor by pointing a camera or smartphone at the viewfinder or screen of a television. If it can detect the IR light being emitted from the television, then the smartphone has an IR sensor.
What are the Differences Between Infrared and Bluetooth Data Transmission?
Both infrared and Bluetooth transmission systems use pulses of energy to transfer data. Despite their similarities, however, each method offers unique benefits that make it best for different applications.
While Infrared connection is a great option for transferring files between laptops, mobile devices, and tablets, it’s not the ideal solution for transferring files between multiple types of computers or other devices. Bluetooth uses radio waves that allow communication between devices regardless of their position in space or the presence of obstructions. As a result, it’s more versatile and easier to use than IR.
Infrared technology is typically a line-of-sight system that requires both devices to be directly facing each other in order to remain connected. This makes it difficult to transfer data between devices when they’re in different rooms or if objects are blocking the line of sight between them.
In contrast, Bluetooth utilizes a technique known as frequency hopping to allow devices to connect to each other even if they’re not located in the same room or within direct line of sight. This works by continuously changing the frequency pattern used by each device so that no two devices’ signals overlap for more than a microsecond. This means that your Bluetooth device can stay connected to up to 79 other Bluetooth-compatible devices at once, which is significantly more than you can do with an infrared connection. This is one reason why Bluetooth has become the preferred wireless transfer medium for most people.
How Can File Transfer Be Made Faster?
Aside from Bluetooth technology, many mobile devices and laptop computers have infrared ports. This can be used to quickly send a file between two devices such as a picture from a camera to a laptop computer or vice versa. Infrared communication is also an effective way to connect a laptop to other electronic devices such as a printer, scanner or digital television.
IrDA (Infrared Data Association) protocols define a set of standards for wireless infrared communications between smart devices and a personal computer. This technology is physically secure and uses line of sight, which means that only the device in direct contact can transmit and receive signals.
If your camera has an IrDA port, simply align it with your computer and initiate the transfer process by following the instructions that came with your digital camera. Once the file has been sent, you will see a dialog box appear on the computer that indicates that you have received a document, folder or picture from another device.
To make transferring files using an infrared connection faster, you can use an application such as LIRC to decode the raw timings of the IR signal. This can be done on a Raspberry Pi or other microcomputers that have the necessary GPIO pins to support this function. However, the setup is not as straightforward as it is with an Arduino, and there are many installation and configuration steps to take.
