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Elevation Makes a Difference |
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Written by Jim Geier
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Monday, 02 April 2007 |
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I've found that many Wi-Fi hotspots in outdoor areas have very poor signal strength because the access points are mounted relatively low to the ground, such as near the edge of roofs. The antennas propagate radio waves that must slice through people, buildings, and other obstacles to reach the users. Because of the resulting attenuation, it's generally better to install the access points (or just the antennas) higher up on light poles if they are available. The problem is that it's difficult to run cabling to these higher mounting places. There's a company deploying Wi-Fi access points on a platform at 65,000 feet above the ground, however, which paints a radio wave foot print the size of Texas. See the corresponding article for more details on this interesting concept.
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