millshre Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Recently it was brought up that there is some interested in getting Wifi on our school buses. We have about 20 or so. We thought about mobile hotspots, but given our rural location, I believe this would be spotty at best. Is it possible to 'broadcast' our wifi over a long distance? How have others schools managed this?
ZeroHour Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 How long is the distance? I dont think its really possible any other way than mobile hotspots to be honest. 1
FN-GM Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 WIFI is designed for short range, so probably not no.
Dos_Box Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 It's a shame WiMAX died a death as this is the kind of thing it was useful for.
Arthur Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Loon ^ Maybe this will be an option in the not too distant future?
DPrince Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 Mobile hotspots. EE do an "in car wifi" unit that plugs into the cigarette lighter socket. I have one in my car that the Android stereo unit connects to. 4G, so pretty decent.
Dos_Box Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 The OP is in the US and I don't think an in-car adaptor will quite cut it for a school bus. Given their rural location they won't have the same coverage as we do in the UK. 1
RowlandoGloom Posted October 28, 2015 Posted October 28, 2015 The thing to watch out for with hotspots that's even if you have unlimited data, hotspots are still capped (WiMAX, Phone, 4G modem etc.). Somehow it detects it's a hotspot and I believe is in place to 'stop' people using t to replace their home broadband. 1
Oaktech Posted October 29, 2015 Posted October 29, 2015 I would google sierra wireless they provide specific 4g/3g wireless hotspots for public transport. If you are trying to get your wireless to reach then your only option is a wireless repeater on the bus and a 'kin huge omnidirectional antenna at your base. I'm not sure how you stand with how much power you can radiate in the US. In the UK you are limited to 100mw without an expensive and difficult to aquire licence. 1
fiberoptics Posted January 7, 2016 Posted January 7, 2016 This article tells how to setup a long distance wifi bridge. It may help. How to Setup a Long Distance WiFi Bridge
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