By Cheyenne Macdonald For Dailymail.com 17:31 08 Nov 2017, updated 07:22 09 Nov 2017
Comments
>Comments
>{{formattedShortCount}}
comments
>>fallback>{{#first?}}Researchers found that a 3D printed reflector can direct signals to desired area
This can strengthen signal where you need it, and reduce it where not needed
According to the team, reflector can be made using cardboard and
aluminium
Scientists have revealed a simple trick that can improve your wireless signal and even strengthen its security, all for under $40 – and, it could outperform antennae that cost into the thousands.
The new technique relies on a 3D-printed reflector wrapped in aluminium foil, which directs the signals toward specific areas, and away from places they’re not needed.
ADVERTISEMENT>While the device works best with the 3D printed material, as it can more accurately capture and maintain the optimal shape for the desired coverage, the team also says you can create a similar structure using cardboard.
Scroll down for video
The inexpensive technique developed by researchers at Dartmouth College and Columbia University essentially creates a ‘virtual wall’ to improve Wifi signal in indoor spaces with multiple rooms.
Shaping the signal allows users to funnel the Wifi toward the areas it’s most needed.
This, according to the team, can reduce interference and the signal-deadening effect of building materials, and even increase the system’s protection against cyberattacks by limiting the signal to certain spaces.
Related Articles
- The secret to success, according to the richest man in the world: Amazon's $95 billion boss Jeff Bezos says never multitask, take risks and approach problems with 'child-like curiosity'
- £200 million worth of digital cryptocurrency is wiped out as bungling developer locks investors out while trying to stop hackers
- 'This is what extinction looks like': Heartbreaking image shows the world's LAST male northern white rhino
- Mystery of the incredibly detailed 3,500-year-old sealstone that was found buried with an ancient Greek warrior - and was 1,000 years ahead of its time
‘Through this single solution, we address a number of challenges that plague wireless users,’ said Xia Zhou, an assistant professor of computer science at Dartmouth.
‘Not only do we strengthen wireless signals, we make those same signals more secure.’
Previous research found that placing an aluminium soda can behind a Wifi access point can strengthen the signal in one direction.
In the new work, the team build upon this idea, and designed an algorithm to optimize a reflector’s shape to target more specific coverage areas.
The team simulated the spread of the signals, along with their interactions with objects in the environment.
HOW IT WORKS
Research has shown that placing an aluminium soda can behind a Wifi access point can strengthen the signal in one direction.
In the new work, the team build upon this idea, and designed an algorithm to optimize a reflector’s shape to target more specific coverage areas.
Shaping the signal allows users to funnel the Wifi toward the areas it’s most needed.
It also helps to reduce interference and help protect against cyberattacks, as it limits the signal to certain spaces.
The researchers 3D printed a structure of the desired shape, and covered it in a thin layer of reflective metal – such as aluminium.
For those who don’t have access to a 3D printer, they also note cardboard could do the trick.
According to the researchers, it algorithm can find the best shape in just 23 minutes, using information on the space, the access points, and the target area.
After printing out the plastic structure, the team then covered it in a thin layer of reflective metal – such as aluminium.
ADVERTISEMENT>Or, for those who don’t have access to a 3D printer, cardboard could also do the trick.
‘Cardboard would act as a reasonable substitute for the 3D printed substrate,’ Justin Chan noted on YouTube, in a comment accompanying the video demonstration.
‘However, it is not easy to bend the cardboard to conform to an arbitrary pattern + the cardboard may bend out of shape.’
In the study, the team tested their method using off-the-shelf WiFi access points, and found it could vastly improve coverage.
‘With a simple investment of about $35 and specifying coverage requirements, a wireless reflector can be custom-built to outperform antennae that cost thousands of dollars,’ said Zhou.
The researchers are working to see if reflectors can be made with different materials, so the device can adapt to any changes in the interior layout, instead of remaining static.
Source : http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5063071/amp/The-simple-hack-improve-WiFi-minutes.html