Optical Wireless for Medical Services: High-speed Inter-building Connectivity

The Problem: Hospitals and medical facilities serve as the information hub for many health-care campus environments. As medical groups embrace technology that enables instant access to digital X-ray images, medical records and other care-related patient files, new bandwidth challenges emerge. Traditionally, the only viable option for building-to-building communication between health care facilities has been dedicated T1/E1 or leased fiber connections. While some hospitals have made the expensive investment in fiber, many are deterred by the cost-prohibitive pains of bringing new buildings into the network. To eliminate the enormous costs of fiber, existing throughput constraints of T1/E1 lines and installations that can take months, hospitals and medical groups are turning to Optical Wireless solutions.

The Solution: Hospitals and medical groups with buildings visible by line-of-sight are turning to high-speed Optical Wireless bridging solutions for real-time medical imaging and patient record transmission. Leveraging proven free-space optics technology that is secure enough for military applications, Optical Wireless solutions combine the speed of fiber with the flexibility of wireless. Using beams of light, hospitals and medical groups can instantly transmit data at ultra high speed without the complications of leased or dedicated lines. With its inherently secure narrow beam, Optical Wireless is virtually impossible to intercept.