In this day and age you may take it for granted that when you jump on a bus or a train you will automatically be able to access free Wi-Fi. Have you ever wondered “How does public transport Wi-Fi work?”
As with your Wi-Fi at home, the connection to the internet is communicated through a router. With the router being situated on a moving vehicle, it needs a reliable antenna to transmit and receive signals
Connection to the internet, whilst travelling by public transport, has become crucial in today’s living.
Issues with public transport Wi-Fi
There are instances when we are ‘on the go’ that invariably throw up a few issues:
- Remote locations
- No coverage
- Slow internet speeds
Internet and Wi-Fi connections are vital for businesses; a high quality, smooth connection is required for critical communications, logistics, vehicle management and social media.
There is now a great demand for transport companies to provide with an all-encompassing Wi-Fi solution to allow for a seamless transition from office to travel.
The greatest challenges experienced with global Wi-Fi connectivity:
- Download and upload speeds
- 3G & 4G connectivity
- VHF & UHF communications for data management of the vehicle
- GPS facilities for vehicle management
In order to achieve the coverage and resilience needed in today’s world, a reliable system is required.
How can we ensure we have reliable Wi-Fi coverage?
The heart of any system is the antenna.
You could throw caution to the wind and spend £’s on an all singing, all dancing vehicle system. However, if you don’t invest in a good antenna your system will not be able to perform to the best of its ability. It would be like buying a super slick MP3 player and listening to your favourite tune with the free earphones from a guided tour.
Many attempts have been made with different types of antenna. These range from simple single band whip antenna through to multiband designs in a single moulding.
In addition, poor build quality, poor IP rating and vibration from the vehicles, lead to these devices being in constant repair and in the end, having to be replaced.
Our vehicles need more than one bandwidth?
Poor design of multiband antennas can lead to interference between the required bands.
To give you an example; a bus could require various bands for different functions:
- VHF or UHF for voice communications through a two way radio system
- GPS for vehicle telematics
- LTE 3G/4G for data transfer
When housed incorrectly, in a multiband encasing, these 3 antennas could potentially interfere with each other. This gives way to issues such as:
- Loss of signal
- Inability for bands to function in tandem
- Poor quality transmission
With all of these issues in mind Signo-Bloomice have developed solutions for both train and bus; a versatile low profile train, bus and coach antenna designed for use in challenging environments.
All solutions offer MiMo Multi Band antennas, suitable for VHF, UHF, WIFI, LTE 3G/4G GSM & GPS.
Testing
Extensive product development has been carried out during the research and development phase:
- Vibration testing
- Efficiency – VSWR (Voltage Standing Wave Ratio)
- EMS and radiation testing
The radiating elements are perfectly tuned to exact customer specifications to ensure no deterioration of performance from overlapping, or overlaid internal structures.
VHF, UHF, WIFI, 3G/4G GSM & GPS can be housed in the same casing for a functional, reliable all band antenna.
Do you work in the public transport sector?
Have you come across any issues with public transport Wi-Fi?
