Wi-Fi 6E Mesh Networks: Where To Place The Extenders?

Wi-Fi is one of the WLANs technologies with the highest penetration in society worldwide. In recent years, Wi-Fi 6E has been defined, which uses the 6 GHz band with higher bandwidth and resource availability. However, the range for this band decreases due to the increase in frequency compared to 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, hence the proposal for the use of mesh networks to overcome the limited range. Therefore, this work empirically assesses the network performance through different setups in indoor scenarios to determine the optimal placement of extender nodes in a Wi-Fi 6E mesh network. The experimental methodology follows a dual approach, studying the channel propagation conditions in the 6 GHz band versus 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, as well as the throughput reported through connectivity with Wi-Fi 6E. The results quantitatively show the reduction in effective network range in the 6 GHz band, due to the increase in frequency, and its influence on effects such as blocking or around-corner propagation. Based on this analysis, a set of guidelines is developed for positioning the extender nodes in the network to maximize network performance according to the propagation channel conditions.