Extending Boundaries with WiLong: A Field Study on Long-Range Wi-Fi Mesh Custom Solution

Mesh networks enables quick on-demand infrastructure creation and help achieve vital last-mile connectivity. Wi-Fi integration can further enhance the potential and compatibility for the pervasive connectivity requirements in next-generation applications. Despite advancements, Wi-Fi standards still need efforts to meet long-range requirements. Accordingly, this paper proposes a customized handheld platform named WiLong for constructing long-range Wi-Fi Mesh networks in the unlicensed higher bands, 2.4 and 5 GHz. The proposed platform can offer versatile radio profiles by leveraging commercially available hardware and open-source software components, augmented with the addition of IEEE 802.11s mesh link and the B.A.T.M.A.N. advanced routing protocol. Experimental evaluations of the said platform have been conducted across various practical environments, including indoor/outdoor spaces, urban & open bay areas, multi-floor basement car parking, and dense mesh deployments. The experimental results underscore the effectiveness of the WiLong platform in improving long-range Wi-Fi performance while emphasizing the significance of multi-hop networking in demanding ground-to-ground scenarios. These findings highlight the platform’s robustness and versatility. In a selected urban route scenario, the WiLong platform achieved 80% voice and 63% video call bandwidth. Additionally, when configured with 2.4 GHz, the platform reached two floors below in a multi-floor basement car parking.