Hacker Remix

WebGPU-Based WiFi Simulator

328 points by jasmcole 3 days ago | 84 comments

seanp2k2 3 days ago

Cool visualization but it focuses so much on the ``'-.,_,.-'`waves`'-.,_,.='`` and not on the actual coverage pattern of 6-12.5cm waves, so not as actually useful for showing coverage as other tools, but fun as an art project.

And of course, I can't mention that without shouting out projectM (open-source Milkdrop) that supports WebGL https://github.com/projectM-visualizer/projectm/blob/master/... and one of the OGs, Geisswerks https://www.geisswerks.com/

If you like that, you might also love NestDrop for music visualization tailored for VJs and with special features to support projecting inside domed surfaces https://nestimmersion.ca/nestdrop.php

jasmcole 3 days ago

Hey, if you click through to one of the example simulations you'll be able to change the visualization from waves to time-averaged power density, which should be closer to what you're looking for.

missblit 3 days ago

Bugs:

#1 if you spam the "add a new source" button you eventually get a JavaScript exception logged to the screen due to an array with a fixed max size of 128 elements overflowing.

#2 this could be graphics card or driver specific (I have an AMD card), but scrolling just right can can break the simulation due the the text boxes; for example by quickly paging up and down, or scrolling all the way to the bottom and then wiggling the scroll position up and down. Once this happens the bad data propagates until the entire thing is filled with noise, solid black, or solid white. If you then scroll up to 3D mode the screen will be filled with a mess of polygons.

grishka 3 days ago

I did get #2 on an Apple M1, so probably not video card specific.

jerbear4328 2 days ago

Reproduced here on NVIDIA as well.

leowbattle 2 days ago

I find the #2 issue happens more easily with a higher simulation speed too.

Woshiwuja 2 days ago

[dead]

dtgriscom 3 days ago

> For example, as you scroll you'll notice that the waves are refracting around these text boxes.

Now, that's useless AND badass.

jasmcole 3 days ago

Definitely the vibe I'm going for!

kristiandupont 2 days ago

I once wanted to make something similar, for sound. I wanted to create active noise cancelling "in the room", instead of via headphones. I pictured these devices combining a microphone and a speaker that you could set up in strategic location. After thinking about it for a bit, I realized that inference would cause areas with silence and others where the sound volume would be doubled. Less than ideal but still possibly interesting. But then I thought about it some more and realized that I needed to think in 3D, which makes the setup orders of magnitude more complex.

It seems like that would apply here as well, at least when looking at the effects of refraction?

withinboredom 2 days ago

If you had a "sound laser", you could control the waves when entering a column (think a "sound umbrella") to cancel out sounds that enter. However, this only works for "regular sounds" (as in non-directional sound, like sound from distant sources, like speakers). So, it wouldn't cancel out things like people speaking. It would be pretty useful for clubs, where at your table you can have regular speaking conversations.

I hate to mention that this is all currently patented. It's pretty "easy" to build though, but you'll have to wait a bit for all the related patents to expire or pay some licensing fees.

eurekin 2 days ago

If that technically worked, I could see that being a next unicorn.

ahmetrcagil 2 days ago

It can work (Look up beamforming). However it takes a 3d array of speakers with a lot of elements positioned in specific points in space, as well as very accurate position tracking for both ears. Very very unlikely to ever beat a high end noise cancelling headphone in terms of performance as well.

If the listener can be fixed in space then the problem gets easier but in that case what you have is actually a very large, room sized headphone that you enter and sit down into.

Source: I indirectly consulted a high-end furniture company on this exact project, they decided to pivot after a while.