Homemade Wi-Fi transceiver. We make a biquadratic ultra-long WiFi antenna for a router with our own hands. Wi-Fi receiver from TP-LINK router

Recently, the number of users on the Internet has been increasing. Many want to use wireless Internet, so any user should know how to make a wi-fi transmitter and receiver. This is very beneficial, because one router allows you to use the Internet for all devices that are in its coverage area and support the Internet.

What this router should be, everyone decides for himself, there are a lot of operating factors that must be taken into account. A standard device consists of a power supply, from which it actually works, a port for connecting to the Internet via a modem, various usb inputs, and so on.

There is a very, very large number of routers, TP-Link alone has about forty types. The choice of a particular router is determined by its power, speed and the number of devices that can uninterruptedly use the network from one router.

WiFi router transmitter power each model is different. It all depends on what kind of power is initially required to achieve. But, do not forget that any router will convert the incoming speed, since the router's router cannot save the initial incoming signal. But, first of all, it all depends on the room in which the router will be used, so for a one-room apartment, a router with a capacity of up to five to six decibels is quite enough.

wifi signal map must distribute a good level of data rate over the entire required area. Therefore, when buying, check with the sellers about the capabilities of the card that is installed in the selected router.

usb models. It is worth noting that models with usb are more expensive than simple routers. The main difference between routers with usb is that they are suitable for connecting the entire system to the wireless Internet, and a simple router is only for organizing the work of a local network.

In different countries, the officially permitted wi-fi transmitter power is different, it depends on many factors connecting the router. Depending on the location of the router, on its characteristics and features, the structure of the wi-fi signal changes. Through various manipulations, the user can adjust the structure for himself. Using powerful wi-fi transmitters, the Internet coverage area reaches several kilometers.

If you still create wireless Internet for yourself using this device, then you need to carefully study all the features of a particular model, which is more suitable. It is important to decide whether the chosen modification is suitable.

How to make a wifi transceiver?

Many are faced with the fact that the level of signal reception is very low. This is due to the fact that the wifi transmitter and receiver are separated by some obstacles: walls, furniture that degrade the signal. The problem is solved by buying a modern or modifying an old device. The new wireless wifi transmitter must have a stronger signal than the existing one.

Option number 1. There are a large number of options for how to make a wifi transmitter. The simplest wifi transmitter is made from a tin can, it works well at short and medium distances.

Required material:

can;
RF N-type connector;
the wire.

Not all cans are suitable for making a transceiver, since ribbed cans scatter waves, so you need to take a smooth tin can with a diameter of 8.3 cm, a length of 21 cm. In addition to it, you need an N-type RF connector with a nut 1.2-1.6 cm, copper or brass wire (length 4 cm, diameter 0.2 cm) and standard tools.

Manufacturing progress. Cut off the top of the beer can, rinse thoroughly and cut a hole the diameter of your N-type RF connector 6.2 cm from the bottom. The bare copper wire is soldered to the N-type RF connector in an upward direction. Then the RF connector is fixed with a nut. Wifi transceiver is ready.

Finished antenna photo:

Option number 2. Wifi transmitters can be made from disc blanks. You will need a regular box for disks for 25 pieces.

Manufacturing progress. Cut off the spindle at a distance of 1.8 cm, form round slots, into which they attach with glue, a double square of wire (length 25 cm, diameter 0.25 cm). A disk is glued to the bottom of the box. A cable is soldered to the center, which is fixed on the back of the box.

If you wish, you can make wifi transmitters or improve existing ones. Making a transceiver is not difficult, the main thing is to observe the correct dimensions and proportions and do everything carefully. Connecting such Wi-Fi transmitters to a laptop is very simple, anyone can do it.

How to transfer data via wifi?

Wi-fi transmitter power. The Wi-Fi transmitter power parameter is one of the most important, since it is he who is responsible for the network coverage area.

There are two ways to increase the power of a wi-fi transmitter:

programmatically;
using additional equipment.

The first is to change the system settings of the equipment, since not every installer sets exactly the maximum values \u200b\u200bwhen connected. The second method is solved by installing additional antennas in the router or replacing the radiating device. Installation of additional antennas may be possible only in certain models of routers.

Reception and transmission of Wi-Fi may be impaired due to thick walls or if the device is placed in a metal box with a high refractive index. To get rid of this effect, you need to move the device to the central part of the room. You can connect it to an existing network using embedded twisted-pair sockets.

PLC adapter company Rostelecom

When there is no internal wiring, you will need to use PLC adapters that output transceiver signals to electrical wiring, and accordingly to the router. With a large area of \u200b\u200bthe room, wireless wi-fi data transmission will require the installation of additional repeaters that distribute and amplify the signal.

Wi-fi sound transmitter. To transmit sound files over a distance, 802.11 standard repeaters are also used, which have an audio output. Such devices can often be found on the market. They are a small adapter with an antenna on one end and a cable outlet on the other, which makes it possible to connect to speakers, stereo, TV or other devices.

A Wi-Fi audio transmitter, like any other device that works according to this standard, requires configuration for normal data transmission.

When designing a wireless data transmission network, the area of the object, as well as the power and technical data of the device that provides communication, should be taken into account. For more accurate measurements, it is recommended to use special equipment. With the right calculation, uninterrupted operation of the Wi-Fi network will be ensured throughout the premises, capable of transmitting both regular files and audio content.

Video signal transmission via wifi

Modern technologies allow the transmission of a video signal in good quality over a distance in several ways. However, wireless methods for obtaining images on remote media are most commonly used. So, the wi-fi video signal is transmitted to various electronic equipment through special receiving devices. In various types of computer equipment, the necessary receivers are already present, which is the advantage of wi-fi.

Transfer analog video via wifi. The transfer of analog video over wi-fi can be complicated due to the low performance of the programs of a certain device or desktop of a personal computer. When using this method of obtaining an image at a distance, there are often difficulties in the settings between clients and the server. In general, there are more disadvantages of this method than advantages.

Many manufacturers offer to buy a wi-fi video transmitter from their company, but consumers should pay attention to its packaging, operating frequency, and software orientation.

Wi-fi video devices can transmit a signal at a distance of 100 m, which is also an important factor when choosing the device in question.

In the modern world, wi-fi video is broadcast to a mobile phone if you first install the appropriate program and select the appropriate device. You can set a password to protect the transmitted video data.

Inspired by an article from the site lan23.ru, about the manufacture of a WiFi feed for a satellite that can be used as an independent antenna, I decided to repeat this business.

You can use the sizes that I used, according to the sizes from Igor Panchenko. 10-12dB

You can use what JoMy suggested. 14-15dB

Or use the factory sizes. 10-12dB

I decided to take the first option, because the second, at the time of the creation of the antenna, did not exist yet.

Dimensions from Panchenko:
Dimensions (material thickness is not critical 0.5-2 mm. Central pin 3 mm. steel):

1. Screen diameter from 90 mm. The bead on it is 15mm. Gives plus 2-3dB
2. Active pancake diameter 68 mm. 11mm from screen. Washing 10 mm from the edge.
3. First director diameter 54mm. Distance from active 12 mm.
4. Second director diameter 38mm. Distance from 1 director 32mm.
5. Third director and subsequent 37 mm. The distance between them is 28-32 mm. At 28 mm, the antenna bandwidth is wider.

Differences in my version:
The central pin took 4mm, because there was no die for threading 3mm.
He planted pancakes not on soldering, but on nuts. So it seemed more practical.
The first pancake, the screen, made 100mm.
I decided to do without a side, because there was nothing to make it from.
The distance between the third director and the next set 28mm.

Having robbed the welders working nearby for a couple of electrodes, peeled and cleaned it with sandpaper, and started cutting threads into studs.

DO NOT DO THIS EVER! If there is no threaded stud, use a soldering iron or a torch and solder with acid!

While I cut 45 cm of thread on the electrode, I got sick like no one else. As it turned out, threading such a length was a long and tedious business, but it was too late to retreat.

Having made the studs, he began to trace the found metal.

A case of a Soviet device made of steel 1 mm thick was discovered. Also found galvanized in 0.5mm. It was decided to use the body. Metal is not critical. Copper or iron doesn't matter. As well as the thickness of the metal. The main thing is to keep in shape.

The body flatly refused to be cut with scissors. Steel stubbornly resisted, the quality was on top. I had to cut it with a hacksaw.

While I was sawing the case and sawing blanks out of it, I thought that galvanizing was also a good thing, and it was cut with a bang with scissors. But it was already too late.

If your antenna is in the case, then you can use thinner metal, which, without protection from crows, can bend.
All blanks are marked with serial numbers and diameter, so as not to be confused.
After cutting and preparation, processing began.
Metal was removed on emery not reaching the border by 0.5-1mm. After a hole was drilled and then the next stage of processing followed.

This distance was left in order to have a margin. For when reaming holes, even on a vertical drilling machine, the holes go 0.5-0.7mm to the side.
The stock during further processing allows you to remove the marriage.

After drilling the holes, two or three pancakes were clamped into a bolt or stud and fixed with a nut with Grovers.
After that, everything was inserted into the drill and the excess metal was removed on a piece of emery.
The final finishing took place on a file clamped in the same vise.
This method allows you to make almost perfect circles, and remove the marriage resulting from reaming.

The photo shows approximately assembled antennas (the dimensions between the pancakes have not yet been exactly set).

For the last pancake, I found an amazing piece of aluminum plate, 3mm thick.
This thickness perfectly allows you to make hidden screws to hold the antenna socket and fasteners.
On the left is a pancake after thermal paint removal, on the right after stripping and grinding.

Measured and drilled a hole for the connector socket. Drilled and flared mounting holes for the connector and fasteners.

Screws and self-tapping screws sat flush with the surface of the pancake.

On the reverse side, the connector is secured with nuts and washers
To mount the antenna on the bracket or in the clamp of the offset antenna, a PVC pipe, 40 cm in diameter, was used. The length is arbitrary.

Holes are made in the pipe with a thin drill, and the pipe itself sits on thin self-tapping screws 20-40 mm long.
The screws themselves are also hidden and turned out flush with the plate.

All item assembled:

In order to protect the pipe from water and not turn it into a home for some kind of insects, I made a plug and glued it in place with super glue.

Not finding what to make a protective cover for antennas from, I decided to limit myself to painting.
Having degreased and properly dried with a hairdryer, I painted them with waterproof enamel from a can in 3 layers.
Another advantage of painting is that the paint additionally locks the nuts.

Type of products after painting:

Antenna mounted on the roof.

Antenna mounted on the return, on the balcony.

Attention!

I made a huge mistake!
A PL-259 socket and connector was purchased not for the proper frequency. These jacks and connectors are rated for 300 MHz and not 2400 MHz as needed for Wi-Fi.
On Wi-Fi, as well as 3G, you need a socket and connector of the N-245 or N-P245 type.

Fortunately, they were the same size and fastening coincided.
Take care in advance of buying high-quality and correct connectors and cable. Wrongly selected, they will eat up a bunch of useful signal, nullifying the gain of the most correct and beautiful antenna.

No one thought that over the past 20 years in every home (in civilized countries) there will be a computer with Internet access. So the standards of 802.11x wireless networks, which used to be considered something overhead and complicated, can now be found in almost every home, albeit “conspiratorial”, because officially the use of Wi-Fi (I will call them the entire range of 802.11x standards) is prohibited without the appropriate permission.

In fact, Wi-Fi was intended for the wireless connection of two or more computers within the same room, maximum one apartment or office. However, these are the same radio signals that, as you know, can be directed, amplified or carried through a cable. Then the scope of application of the technology can be somewhat expanded: entire buildings and even quarters can be connected to each other. But we face two problems: technical and economic.

Technical problem: the wavelength range occupied by most Wi-Fi standards is in the 2.4 GHz range, and at such high values it becomes extremely difficult to “drive” the signal into the wire. Due to the high frequency of the signal, the transmitters must certainly be in the line of sight, or at most separated by a weak partition such as tree foliage, but not by the wall of the house. Yes, and the transmitter power for such distances is still not enough, and I have not seen available devices for signal amplification in free sale.

The economic problem is that existing devices for amplifying and propagating a radio signal are insanely expensive, and a wireless network must provide the main condition - to be cheaper than wired technologies. And why then is it otherwise needed at all, because for such money it is already possible to stretch an “overhead” line of a network cable? Let me give you an example: the cost of an antenna for the propagation of Wi-Fi radio waves is $200, the cost of a 50m Belden H1000 cable with branded tips is $60 ... Only one thing is good: direct hands and knowledge of physics can reduce these costs by more than 10 times! That is, you can spend no more than $10 on the entire network (not including Wi-Fi adapters)!

Formulation of the problem

Wireless networks have created a lot of opportunities to connect computers in the most accessible (or cheap) way, the wired connection of which would be too expensive. So my friend and I faced a similar task - to connect the “incompatible”.

It would seem that even for the existing Wi-Fi standards, the task is very difficult: you need to connect computers in apartments located on opposite sides, albeit standing nearby (at a distance of 100m) from each other of two houses. What is the direct line of sight? Here is an example diagram:

The action plan is:

1. Make two external antennas from improvised materials.

2. Place them on a rod near my balcony and on the roof of a friend's house and secure them with clamps. The photo shows the view from the transmitters.

3. Through BNC connectors (from a 10-megabit coaxial network), connect a cable to the antennas, the price of which cannot exceed 8 rubles / meter, and at the same time it must have attenuation no more than 30dB / 100m.

4. Instead of standard antennas (more precisely, their connectors), solder a wire with a connector to the Wi-Fi adapters to quickly disconnect the cable from the device and screw the connector to the PC case. In general, such an adapter from a connector to an external antenna is called a pigtail, and it was only possible to find it in a large St. Petersburg store, at a price of about $ 15. Managers, of course, said "we don't have those."

In general, any new idea is a little adventurous and always stumbles upon someone’s “no”, “idiocy”, and so on, there will definitely be an “article” where everything planned is crossed out by a categorical statement of a cool “specialist”, and at the bottom, most often we can see links to a small online store with such, you know, “ridiculous” prices ...
There are many types of antennas for Wi-Fi networks: omnidirectional, parabolic, canned, biquad, point directional. The most accessible and simple are can antennas and biquads. They can be easily directed (that is, concentrate the entire signal in a certain direction), easy to manufacture (it was not in vain that I mentioned tin and coffee cans), they are not bulky (but lightness and invisibility are important). But for our network, we chose the can type - it is more compact than the biquad and has a fairly narrow radiation pattern (just right for a point-to-point connection). In the end, it is not in vain that all GSM works on it. You can, of course, use a dish with the transmitter in focus, or build an FA-20 unsurpassed in efficiency divided by price.

The manufacture of a can antenna involves the use of certain laws of wave theory. In short: the signal in the bank is maximum at the first quarter of the sine wave, and it is in this place that we must place a waveguide of a certain length in order to read it or even amplify it.

We used a diet food antenna and my friend used a 125 cup Nescafe can. Their characteristics were close to ideal. Therefore, if you cannot find a jar of a suitable size at home, take a ruler in your hands and go to the supermarket.

In the manufacture of one more concern arises - lightning protection. You need to make sure that there is a lightning rod nearby and the antenna does not stick out at the highest point. Don't forget about it! Plus, do not forget about waterproofing, especially if the antenna is located in a not very accessible place.

In Western sources, we meet the requirement to use a special high-frequency connector for wireless networks of this type. But it is expensive and difficult to buy, so it was decided to get by with the most ordinary BNC connector, which still remained in radio stores. Here is what the BNC connector kit looks like:

To the central conductor, which, in theory, should crimp the wire, we solder our waveguide. The most time-consuming part is to solder the wire to the mating (outer) end, because there are no other ways except to get inside the connector. The easiest way is to form a loop from the end and, dropping a little tin, melt the solder inside the connector.

Wires should ideally have a characteristic impedance of 50 ohms and as little attenuation as possible. But I already mentioned the price of such wires, but we needed no less than 50 meters of cable - a third of the distance from computer to computer, and a cheap RG-58 cable introduced very strong attenuation. So I had to use a workaround - a cheaper 75-ohm cable. The fact is that at high frequencies the mismatch loss (I refer to the information from one of the forums) is small - about 10%. Attenuation per meter plays the main role here. Therefore, the cable was chosen RG-6U. And the characteristics are like those of an expensive 50-ohm speaker, and the price is divine - only $ 0.2 per meter.

wifi adapter

When buying a Wi-Fi adapter, you need to remember the following: in principle, the characteristics from the offered assortment are most often the same, so you don’t need to focus on the thought that “this one has more power per decibel, so I take it.”

But the presence of an external connector and an external antenna in the delivery set is mandatory. No, of course, you can also buy an adapter with a small antenna directly at the connector, but trust me: you are tormented by soldering! The only exception may be the presence of the so-called. "pigtail" - an adapter from the RP-SMA connector to the connector for an external antenna (N-Type).

However, the price of such a piece of wire - from $ 10, coupled with a glassy look of the manager. Therefore, this method is only suitable if there is this same wiring and high-quality high-frequency connectors.

In our opinion, we chose the Edimax adapter as the most suitable one. The company has only one model for PCI - EW-7128G.

Antenna mount

An important part of good signal reception is a quality mount. Here everyone gets out in their own way, but I will give my mounting option, although I do not consider it the most successful (at least be prepared to re-tune your antenna after 2 days of network operation).

An aluminum plate from the 3.5" bay of the ATX case is attached along the can. As a rule, holes have already been made at the factory in the places we need, and we just have to carefully drill the jar in the center. A jar is attached to the extreme holes, and the fastening itself is fastened to the end of any beam (I used an old plinth) with a self-tapping screw to the end of any beam (I used an old plinth).

Sound calculation is an important detail of success, operating with which, you will be able to resist all the "intrigues of imperialism" in the form of small commercial "articles".

So we have:

Of course, my data is very approximate, but they also give a clear picture of the fact that even in such “terrible” conditions, the network will be able to work. Plus, do not forget that the can antenna concentrates the signal in one direction, which means more useful power will reach the recipient.

Installation

The next step is aiming. The best way here is experimentation, but it does not hurt to calculate the range of angles. We have a standard geometric problem.

The slope of the rooftop antenna will also be slightly more than 4 degrees, and a good fixing strength must be ensured.

Trial run
Before the first launch of a new network, I would like to give a calculation of all the costs of its creation.

The very last step remained, for the sake of which, in fact, everything was started - a solemn inclusion. It was produced without a bottle of champagne, an orchestra and festivities appropriate for this phenomenon. A dry screenshot just appeared on the screen, which answered all our questions:

To be honest, we did not believe in success until the very end. The channel calmly maintains a connection speed of 11Mbps, but the real copying speed is half as much - under good conditions (i.e., with the correct adjustment of the antenna), the average speed is 600KBytes / s, about 4/5 packets reach the addressee, the rest reach after a second request (after retry).

Conclusion
I think you can see for yourself. The process of building a Wi-Fi network is actually not as difficult in practice as it seems. The main thing in this business is an accurate calculation and direct hands. Of course, high-quality components are also desirable, but this is not so critical.

A modern router, as a rule, is no longer just a router, it combines several devices. It can perform different tasks, one of which we will talk about in this article. There is such a device as a Wi-Fi receiver, or adapter. Its task is to receive a Wi-Fi signal, in other words, connect a specific device to a Wi-Fi network. Such adapters are built into laptops, tablets, smartphones, TVs, etc.

There are also external adapters, for example, for desktop computers (I wrote about them in the article), or for TVs. But what if we need to connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi the same stationary computer, or a TV that does not have a built-in Wi-Fi receiver. And we don't have any outside either. We do not want to buy it, or simply there is no such possibility.

In such a situation, an ordinary router can help us out, it can act as a Wi-Fi network receiver. That is, it will receive the Internet via Wi-Fi from our wireless network, and transmit it to the device (TV, computer) via network cable.

It should be noted right away that there are routers that have a separate "Adapter" mode of operation. But in most devices, you will need to configure the mode of the repeater, bridge (WDS), client, or wireless connection to the provider.

Now we will take a closer look at these modes on routers from different manufacturers, and find out how to use the router as a wireless network receiver. Consider the most popular manufacturers: TP-LINK, ASUS, ZyXEL, D-Link, Netis. Look for the heading below with information on your device.

Making a Wi-Fi receiver from a ZyXEL router

I decided to start with ZyXEL devices. From the line of ZyXEL Keenetic routers. This company's routers support a variety of operating modes. And including there is an "Adapter" mode. On devices with the new NDMS V2 firmware version, which is blue in appearance.

In addition, everything is configured very simply and clearly. And everything works. I have already checked all the operating modes of the ZyXEL router (on the example of the Keenetic Start model), and of course prepared detailed instructions. Just put the router near the computer or TV, connect them via a network cable, set the "Adapter" mode, and you're done.

If you suddenly do not have such an operating mode, then you can (wireless connection to provider). By the way, this method can be used on older versions of devices.

Media Bridge mode

It was only in the process of writing this article, on the more expensive Asus RT-N18U model, that I discovered the Media Bridge mode, which suits us much better than the amplifier mode. (even if you look at the operation scheme in the control panel).

But the Asus RT-N12+ does not have this mode of operation. Which, in principle, is logical, because it is not very suitable for serious multimedia tasks. In the near future I will prepare a separate instruction for setting up the Media Bridge mode. I will check everything and write how it fits or not.

Wi-Fi receiver from TP-LINK router

Especially, they often ask how to convert such popular partitions as TP-LINK TL-WR740N, TL-WR841N, etc. into a receiver.

On such devices, you will have to use bridge mode, aka WDS.

Since in repeater mode, these routers do not work (wrote about this). But I can’t say anything yet about the new routers from TP-LINK. Perhaps there is already support for different modes of operation. I know that only access points from TP-LINK can work in repeater mode. And there is no adapter mode, as far as I know.

There is also a separate instruction for setting up WDS mode on TP-LINK:

I can say with confidence that in the bridge mode, the Internet from the TP-LINK router via a network cable works. There were many questions about this, I asked TP-LINK support, everything works. You just need to disable DHCP. The article linked above has all the information you need.

D-Link router as receiver

I can’t answer exactly for all models of D-Link routers, but based on my own experience, I can say that in order to use these routers as an adapter, they can be configured in wireless client mode. Checked on DIR-615, DIR-300.

It must be admitted that this mode of operation of the D-Link router is great for distributing the Internet via cable. In addition, it is possible to turn off the wireless network, which is very useful.

For more detailed instructions on setting up client mode on D-Link devices, see here:. See after the heading "Connecting a D-Link router to another router via Wi-Fi (client mode)". Everything is detailed there. Perhaps later I will prepare a separate instruction.

Adapter (client) mode on Netis routers

If you have a Netis router and you want to use it to connect devices to the Internet via a network cable, then it is best to configure it in "Client" mode. You can also use it without any problem. Checked, everything works.

Configuring the router in "Client" mode

Everything is very simple. In the settings, which can be accessed at netis.cc go to advanced settings by clicking on the big button Advanced and immediately go to the tab "Wireless mode" - "Wi-Fi settings". In the "Radio Mode" drop-down menu, select "Client". Click on the "AP Scan" button.

A list of available networks that you can connect to will appear. Opposite your network, select the "Connected" radio button. Click on the "Connect" button.

Then set the password for the main Wi-Fi network, and click on the "Save" button.

After these steps, my router rebooted, and the Internet immediately started working via cable.

Important point: in client mode, the Netis router does not broadcast the Wi-Fi network, which is very good. If you need internet via cable and Wi-Fi, then set it up in repeater mode (link to instructions above).

Afterword

Later I will try to add information on other manufacturers: Tenda, Linksys, etc.

Almost any router can be turned into a receiver. Many, I think, have an old router that is already just gathering dust on a shelf, and only takes up space. And it might still come in handy. And replace the adapter for a desktop computer, TV, game console and other devices. In order not to pull the network cable through the whole house.