One of the most common concerns people have when determining Wi-Fi coverage in their solutions is dead spots that appear due to a weak or non-existent wireless network signal. The name may sound ominous, but fear not, as these connectivity gaps are far from fatal. In fact, they can be easily solved with the right networking equipment and technologies like Wi-Fi mesh.
As the name suggests, Wi-Fi dead spots are nothing but areas where the wireless network signal is absent. These areas prevent you from browsing the web or sending and downloading data files to another destination.
While Wi-Fi dead spots are commonly associated with smart homes and offices, they are also prevalent in industrial applications, where they pose a significant challenge when Wi-Fi is required for data transmission between machines.
In all their diversity, IoT solutions can solve unique and nuanced problems that can cause Wi-Fi dead spots. Interestingly, the home and industrial IoT sectors tend to face similar hurdles when it comes to Wi-Fi dead spots.
WHAT CAUSES WI-FI DEADSPOTS?
Among the common issues causing Wi-Fi dead spots, the conditions surrounding the router are usually the most important. This includes the location of the router and the presence of physical objects that can interrupt or even completely absorb the Wi-Fi signal.
Brick or metal materials are known to disrupt Wi-Fi propagation. This is unfortunate, as these are widely used as reinforcement in construction for walls and structural integrity.
This factor greatly affects the strategic placement of a router in a building. A poorly thought-out placement could result in an almost non-existent wireless signal, due to signal distribution issues and interference with physical objects.
Just like people, network devices are all different, each with limits on the number of devices it can support simultaneously and the type of network performance it can handle effectively.
So, if you want to avoid Wi-Fi dead spots, it is crucial to consider your network device's ability to handle network traffic, manage device congestion, and ensure equal network distribution among connected devices.
HOW TO OVERCOME WI-FI DEAD SPOT?
While we can’t advise you on permanently modifying the structure of your building, trust us: there’s absolutely no need to resort to such measures. Wi-Fi mesh technology and compatible network devices can distribute Wi-Fi signals throughout your building just as effectively.
In conjunction with routers or network access points, Wi-Fi mesh technology creates internal communication between network endpoints and enables uniform network coverage throughout the building. In addition, this internal communication hides a multitude of features.
WHY SHOULD I USE WI-FI MESH?
With devices such as the Teltonika Networks RUTX10 industrial router, Wi-Fi mesh technology allows you to configure Wi-Fi nodes and use a backup configuration to apply the same settings to multiple connected devices within the mesh network. This not only ensures uniform settings across different nodes, but also simplifies the overall management process.
It also allows you to have greater control over the ongoing performance of your network by establishing a network architecture that facilitates alternative rerouting of traffic in the event of a failure of one or more devices.
At the same time, Wi-Fi mesh allows devices to automatically select the most optimal channel for each endpoint to operate on, minimizing the risk of interference and congestion.
HOW TO SET UP WI-FI MESH ON TELTONIKA NETWORK ROUTERS?
First of all, almost all Teltonika Networks routers have Wi-Fi mesh technology, except for the RUT300, RUTX08 and RUTX09, which do not support this technology.
Our Wiki Knowledge Base provides a complete example of a Wi-Fi mesh setup. Complete with step-by-step instructions, this guide shows how you can enable this technology using RutOS, our in-house operating system that powers all of our gateways and routers.
This example covers a configuration for the mesh gateway, a master node that acts as a DHCP server and a bridge between the WAN and LAN networks, responsible for managing and routing traffic between the two networks, and the rest of the routers involved in the mesh, acting as regular nodes.
The setup is then followed by a few examples showing how to test if you have done the setup correctly. The first is the “ping test”, where an ICMP echo request is sent from the mesh gateway to a device connected to one of the nodes. The second is the tried and true walk around the coverage area with a device connected, checking for consistent and robust internet signal strength.
MESH WIFI IN ACTION
If you want to see how mesh Wi-Fi technology works in practice, we have two great use cases covering smart offices and industrial sectors. The first use case shows how this technology strengthens a sustainable office and ensures that all network-dependent equipment has robust and uninterrupted network connectivity.
The second use case showcases how Wi-Fi mesh technology helps automate industrial and remote warehouses while maintaining the flawless performance of each machine.