What's new

AT&T’s Project AirGig To Deliver Low-Cost Wireless Internet Services Through Powerlines

  • SNBForums Code of Conduct

    SNBForums is a community for everyone, no matter what their level of experience.

    Please be tolerant and patient of others, especially newcomers. We are all here to share and learn!

    The rules are simple: Be patient, be nice, be helpful or be gone!

Julio Urquidi

News Editor
attairgig.jpg
AirGig is an AT&T project designed to transmit multi-gigabit wireless internet using urban, rural and underserved locations’ powerlines. Unlike previous internet-over-powerline efforts, AT&T's method uses "medium voltage" powerlines as waveguides for the millimeter wave RF signals (>30 GHz) that actually carry the data.

AT&T said low-cost plastic antennas and devices located along the power line send wireless signals to each other, using the power lines as a guide. There is no physical connection to the poweline.

With more than 100 related patents, AT&T literally built Project AirGig from the ground up. Also, AirGig, according to AT&T, would be easy to deploy since most of the resources needed are already provided for. Building new towers and running underground cables would be unnecessary.

For more information about AirGig, check out this AT&T video on YouTube.

Field trials for AT&T’s AirGig begin in 2017.
 
And the latency will be? 100ms? 500ms? 1,000ms?
Should be fine for browsing the web, but it'll be less so for anything that requires a real time connection.
The range also seems quite limited from the pole and the video suggest that every pole needs a device.
 
Unless they're using something from 2099, I can't see this working at expected capacity (i.e. serving a town, for example, at GbE speeds). Will this be free? Will more equipment be needed to 'connect' to AirGig?

With almost every current expansion looking to place infrastructure underground, I think they're placing their bets on the wrong future.
 
Unless they're using something from 2099, I can't see this working at expected capacity (i.e. serving a town, for example, at GbE speeds). Will this be free? Will more equipment be needed to 'connect' to AirGig?

Neat stuff - it's a bit Telsa (not Elon's car, but rather the Inventor) - obviously AT&T wouldn't announce something if it were not viable.

Keep in mind that they had substantial research and development assets that they've acquired over the years..

Very high frequency RF - we're talking E and K band - has interesting characteristics around high intensity electromagnetic fields...

In some ways - it's similar to what SNB builders see with Ethernet and normal household AC runs, where we don't want coupling - e.g. don't run ethernet parallel with 100-220 VAC @ 50/60 Hz, as that will cause noise in the ethernet side.

But then we look at PLC, where 50/60Hz is used as Sync for the medium there... (and the rest is basically RF over copper) - ATT's AirGIG is not that - e.g. it's not BPL - otherwise we'd immediately hear from the ARRL folks, and that has not happened (yet...)

There is a synergy - and I'm thinking off-hand - they're using the near-field effect of HV lines to duct RF... not that much different than certain frequencies benefiting from over water or atmospheric ducting (e.g. skip).

The HAM in me, along with being an engineer, I'm really curious as to how this works...
 
i quoted this on another forum. I dont think this will happen knowing american ISPs being anti competitive, such as having influence into the local politicians to delay or prevent google fiber from expending.

So unless these companies have to in order to stay competitive this project will not happen or will happen but wont be as good.

while it is impressive in terms of wireless technology it is unimpressive compared to fiber optics and probably more expensive. Many of these companies dont even upgrade their backbones in many areas where there is no competition. Seeing the horror stories of american ISP customers it doesnt seem that this will help.

The latency is going to be enormous. I believe @sfx2000 has a similar setup but with the AP wired rather than wirelessly transmitting about.
 
The latency is going to be enormous. I believe @sfx2000 has a similar setup but with the AP wired rather than wirelessly transmitting about

Not so certain about the latency - if it's done right, it won't been that much different no matter which medium things are carried over...

as for the comment about about me having a similar setup - not sure what that means :)
 
Not so certain about the latency - if it's done right, it won't been that much different no matter which medium things are carried over...

as for the comment about about me having a similar setup - not sure what that means :)
Dont you have gigabit internet provided by mobile (like 4G or something)?
 
Dont you have gigabit internet provided by mobile (like 4G or something)?

Full time broadband here at the house is provided by Cable Modem.

I have done quite a bit of world on LTE and Wimax, and done a few trials...

AirGIG would be more aligned with the 5G group of technologies I would think...
 
I've also heard that Google is talking about going forward with microwave links (wireless) to reduce cost from Gb fiber, where each house would have an antenna. The article didn't really hang together for me, kind of implied that the "last mile" delivery would be via wireless rather than running fiber to a lot of individual houses...
 

Sign Up For SNBForums Daily Digest

Get an update of what's new every day delivered to your mailbox. Sign up here!
Top