Question on solution for wireless field workers

news2010a · ‎06-10-2009

Hi, imagine I need to explore a solution which should let field workers (snow cleaning crew, public employees removing trees from city roads, etc) take pictures and exchange e-mail, data while in the field.

Currently we are using EV-DO, but lot of dead spots, sometimes solution does not provide strong enough coverage.

Someone told me about a solution in which the access points could be installed in trucks, etc. They told me the name is 'fully meshed wireless networks'. Does that make sense?

Are you familiar with that solution and where I can find more information?

Leo Laohoo · ‎06-10-2009

This is possible if the mesh AP can back-haul back to the controller. If your truck with a mesh AP is in an area where the mesh AP can't see the rest of the network, it won't work.

naks · ‎06-11-2009

Hi,

What you can do is to install MESH access points (1520 Model) in the field. These mesh access points are connected to the Wirless LAN Controller (WLC) either through the ethernet or the 802.11a depending on their role. On the trucks you can have a work group bridge (WGB) that can connect to mesh access points. As the truck moves, the WGB connects to the nearest access point and hence you always stay connected.

There are a lot of case studies done for 1520 access points at this url:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps8368/prod_case_studies_list.html

See if that helps.

Regards,

Nagendra