General Boards > Redecorating and Updating your Motorhome
Upgraded WiFi Connections
Edward Buker:
This is a little off the beaten path regarding RV upgrades but it may be useful to some folks that like to fool with computers, routers, or maybe have some ham radio experience.... it is a useful upgrade to improve your typical WiFi connection in an RV park or beyond what is available in the park if needed.
There is a device called the Bullet M2HP by a company called Ubiquity. It is available in a 1 watt version at about $85. You also would need a $15 power supply and an antenna $20-$50. This device is a little electronic miracle. It houses a transmitter, receiver, microprocessor, firmware (software), and an Ethernet interface all housed in a 1 inch by 6 inch weatherproof housing. What it enables, is to mount an antenna and all of the radio communication circuitry outside of your RV and just feed a small Cat 5 Ethernet cable to the inside of your RV. The sailing community has embraced this device to latch onto WiFi in harbors. What I have heard of for installs in the RV community is a ladder install either temporary or permanent. I also heard of one install where a person fed the Ethernet cable up to the batwing antenna alongside the TV antenna coax and mounted the Bullet and antenna to the square tube of the batwing and could then rotate it for reception. For my case I experimented with an interior install.
http://www.wifi-stock.com/details/bulletm2.html
Antenna link for what I used....many 2.4 GHZ antenna choices from Lcom
http://www.l-com.com/item.aspx?id=21808
My first try was to mount the device inside a cabinet where my wireless router is housed but at 2.4GHZ the RF attenuation was too severe. That led me to route an Ethernet cable from the overhead cabinet to the dash area. I then mounted the Bullet on a mini tripod that I can quickly set up on the dash. Glass seems to have little to no RF attenuation. When not in use the portion of wire that resides in the dash area is coiled up and stored under the access panel for dashboard. There is a 90degree N connector between the Bullet and the small rectangular directional antenna. That would be omitted if you chose a standard vertical antenna. Where my Laptop sees 2 networks in my neighborhood from the RV, the Bullet on the dash sees nine. This device makes what is a marginal WiFi connection quite usable. I tie this device by Ethernet cable to my wireless router in the RV for convenience. The Ethernet cable can also go directly to your PC.
The initial set up of this device has the pitfalls of setting up any wireless network router device with some trial and error. Once you get by the initial set up complete and the values stored in the Bullet you would have a simple procedure to use it in the future that consists of scanning for wireless networks and selecting one.
How and where you mount one of these units is left to your own imagination but being up on the ladder or roof provides the best line of sight to the typical WiFi antenna network. Hope this helps.
Later Ed
Richard And Babs Ames:
Is it a directional antenna (has to be aimed at the signal source)?
Jeremy Parrett:
go to www.radiolabs.com and look for WaveRV antennas. I have one on my sailboat and one on the Marquis. Both are USB plug and play omnidirectonal.
Edward Buker:
The antenna I am using is is a housed directional panel antenna, that can be mounted for vertical (most likely) or horizontal polarization. It has 12dbi gain, a 60 degree beamwidth, and decent rejection from the backside. I can get a 270 degree "sweep" from the dash area using the windshield, front driver, and passenger side window views. You do not want too much gain and a reasonably wide beamwidth antenna. 60 degree is a good compromise, for just aiming in the general direction, without having to "pinpoint" an alignment.
In the Bullet Firmware, there is an align antenna panel, that shows a signal strength meter, that you can view on your Laptop, as you sweep with the tripod handle. There are also some LEDs on the bullet itself, that indicate signal strength. If I was thinking of mounting this unit more permanently outside, I would probably opt for a small vertical omnidirectional antenna, where a directional one makes more sense on the dash. They have 4db gain at about 8 inches long, and 6db at 12 inch long versions at Lcom.
As Jeremy noted above, radiolabs offers another solution via USB connect. It is omnidirectional and weatherproof. I'm not overly keen on having to use a USB wired interface, I would prefer to run everything through a wireless router and not be wire tethered in the RV. The white box in my cabinet photo is an Apple Airport Express wireless router, that my Ethernet cable, from the Bullet is tied to. That being said, the plug and play aspect of USB does keep it simple for the user, and has that advantage.
Later Ed
http://www.l-com.com/item.aspx?id=22263
Gil_Johnson:
--- Quote from: Jeremy Parrett ---go to www.radiolabs.com and look for WaveRV antennas. I have one on my sailboat and one on the Marquis. Both are USB plug and play omnidirectonal.
--- End quote ---
I had one of these, and did some grude testing. Much to my surprise, the performance increase wasn't noticable over my laptop's internal Wi-Fi system. I suspect this to be more due to the SW that is used with the Wave, than the Wave itself. I sold it within the week.
Gil
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