Some light bulbs include network communication components. For example, existing light emitting diode (LED) light bulbs include a wireless transceiver capable of receiving and transmitting communications employing a wireless local area network protocol, such as a Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11 standard-compliant) protocol. The wireless network communications may be used to control the light bulb, for example, by turning the light element in the light bulb on or off, dimming the light, or changing the color of the light. In existing light bulb designs, the wireless transceiver is coupled to a small antenna that is typically located within the light bulb housing.
Such light bulbs may encounter wireless communication issues, as the light bulb configuration often limits the size and positioning of the antenna. For example, a light bulb may not be able to reliably communicate if the bulb is located a long distance from a wireless access point, such as on a different floor than the wireless access point. Also, the presence of multi-path fading, polarization effects, scatterers, attenuating media, and other signal degradation and noise may further hinder communication performance. Light bulbs located within fixtures may also experience reduced reception of communication signals and the wireless network communication range for the bulb.