Line of Sight

What Does Line of Sight Mean?

Line of sight (LoS) is a type of propagation that can transmit and receive data only where transmit and receive stations are in view of each other without any sort of an obstacle between them. FM radio, microwave and satellite transmission are examples of line-of-sight communication.

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Techopedia Explains Line of Sight

Long-distance data communication is more effective through wireless networks but geographical obstacles and the curvature of the earth bring limitations to line-of-sight transmission. However, these issues can generally be mitigated through planning, calculations and the use of additional technologies.

For example, mobile phones use a modified line-of-sight transmission, which is made possible through a combination of effects like diffraction, multipath reflection, local repeaters and rapid handoff.

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Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…