Antennas are our company's secret weapon.
But what exactly is an antenna?
Antennas have been around for a long time and are used for many applications.
On this page we limit ourselves to antennas that you can use for Internet and WiFi.
For other applications we refer you to other pages via links.
What is an antenna anyway?
The general description for antenna is:
An antenna is a device for transmitting and/or receiving electrical waves. An antenna converts a radio frequent field into an alternating current or vice versa.
The coils used by Nikola Tesla around 1890 are considered one of the first forms of antennas.
In the 1920s, when the generation of radio waves with ultra-short wavelengths became possible, antennas could also be made for 1 particular frequency, and different antenna types were developed.
By now, there are many different types of antennas.
So antennas convert electrical signals into radio waves. These are also called electromagnetic fields or radiation. You cannot see these waves or fields. They are invisible waves through the air.
All antenna systems and devices with an antenna send and receive information through these fields. Consider the radio, cell phone, tablet, baby monitor and Wi-Fi networks. Electromagnetic fields are all around us.
The fields or waves have a certain frequency.
Frequency
is the number of vibrations per second of a radio wave.
The unit is hertz.
Mobile communications operate at frequencies between 700 megahertz and 2600 megahertz. As of 5G, even higher frequencies can be used, 3500Mhz and also the 35,000MHz (35GHz.) Mobile providers choose which generation (G) they deploy on a frequency. That can be 3G, 4G or 5G or a combination thereof.
These sites list antennas and explain how they work:
- Antenneburo
The Antenneburo is the national government's information bureau on antennas for wireless mobile communications. - Wikipedia
Which antenna to transmit -vs-Which antenna to receive
For both a transmitting and receiving antenna, the directional characteristic is an important property.
The directional characteristic shows in which direction a transmitting antenna bundles radiation.
For a receiving antenna, the directional characteristic shows the sensitivity of the antenna to different directions.
Some receive antennas are sensitive only in one particular direction, so that only signals from that direction can be received.
What can you use an antenna for?
In this paper, as mentioned above, we limit ourselves to antennas for mobile telecommunications and the Internet, but antennas are also used for
-radio and TV
-mobilifone and walkie-talkie
-semaphone
-point to point radio links
-communication systems for emergency services
WiFi antenna
A WiFi antenna or dish always needs an unobstructed line-of-sight connection to the WiFi transmitting mast to receive signal.
Any object; tree-pole-pole will not allow WiFi to reach the terminal pole.
A WiFi antenna can only reach 1 mast. If it cannot be reached, one has no Internet.
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Example:
Last year we vacationed in the beautiful Italian province of Le Marche with Menno and Mireille www.casacastignano.com.
Their home was on a hilltop. Fantastic surroundings, beautiful house, lovely people and delicious food ... highly recommended.
But what it's all about now:
At the bottom of the village of Offida was a central WiFi transmitter mast.
Because Menno's house had an unobstructed view of this village (not being their own) , and thus of the transmitter mast, he was able to achieve an internet speed of about 30/10 using a WiFi dish in good weather.
Had the house been on the other side of the hill, too bad, no internet with this solution.
The AirInternet solution we had with us (as always :)) easily achieved a speed of 60/30, without antenna, on both sides of the hill!!!
Click here for even more practice examples.
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What antenna for high-speed internet does QCS AirInternet use?
Standard
The standard antennas we use can always look around 360 degrees (omni) when mounted freely. Free view is important because it allows you to get the optimal signal. If you place the antenna against a wall, you limit the view because the antenna cannot see through the wall.
Second advantage is that our standard antenna, provided it has a clear view, has a range of 10 kilometers. Within this 10 kilometer range, it can see all transmission towers and the modem itself selects the strongest signal. If the signal from a transmitter mast goes down, the modem can independently switch to another transmitter mast within its range.
Challenge
If a location is in a more challenging coverage area, we can also still work with directional antennas. These do not have a 360-degree view but look in a radius of, say, 60 degrees. The amplified signal created at this 60-degree angle has a much longer range that allows distances of up to 40 kilometers to be covered. This allows a stable connection to be established in the middle of a coverage area blind spot.
Mobile locations
The above are examples of stationary antennas, of course there are also many examples that involve a mobile location. Think of shipping, transportation or buses and RVs. For these mobile locations there are several special antennas on the market such as puck antennas and marine antennas that are specially built to perform optimally in these harsh conditions.
By default, there is 5 meters of antenna cable attached to the antenna and one must place the modem within these 5 meters. The modem is plugged into a nearby wall outlet. Nowadays, however, there are also antennas where the modem is built in and the whole thing is powered using PoE (power over Ethernet). Modem and antenna are in a waterproof and easy to mount housing.
The big advantage of this is that instead of 5 meters you can now work with up to 90 meters without signal loss! This is because the distance between modem and router is increased to 100 yards .
In short:
Whatever the situation , thanks to the wide variety of antennas, a stable and fast connection can be created anywhere in Europe.
For an overview of the antennas we currently deploy, please request our product catalog at sales@airinternet.eu
Where can I order this antenna for fast internet?
We deliver our products all over Europe. We do this through a partner network.
Contact us and we will discuss the possibilities and put you in touch with a supplier.
Ordered today, delivered tomorrow!
Call +31 88 433 33 33 or email info@airinternet.eu Or would you like to become a partner yourself? Of course you can! Call +31 88 433 33 01 or mail to sales@airinternet.eu for your own antenna !!!
