Cell signal boost in area with limited connectivity ...
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Does anyone know if there is a way to boost cell signal strength in an area where connectivity is very limited. One of our plants is in a very rural area and cell connectivity is spotty at best. Sometimes it seems to work a little, other times, no connectivity at all. I know there are those indoor type units that connect to a LAN and get out over IP but we really need an outdoor rated unit that can cover a large part of our property. The primary use case is for a transportation system that we use where the units in the trucks connect over the cell network. Our drivers have trouble logging in and doing other functions because the units won't connect to the cell network while on our property. They have to drive a little ways down the road most of the time to ensure a successful connection.
If it matters we're with Verizon for our company cell phones but they have been no help at all, having only suggested the indoor units for inside the plant which is not what we really need. Some folks who have US Cellular plans are also able to have some limited connectivity at that site but it's still poor.
Are there 3rd party solutions available to address this kind of need? What I'm wondering is if we could erect a small tower on top of our building or something that could connect to the cell network and provide us coverage on our property.
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What about doing outdoor WiFi for those phones? Might be easier than cellular frequencies.
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@Dashrender said in Cell signal boost in area with limited connectivity ...:
What about doing outdoor WiFi for those phones? Might be easier than cellular frequencies.
I wish that I could but the devices in the trucks are cell only and that's the primary use case. We have units in the trucks that keep up with driver logs, location, engine issues, etc ...
That all gets reported back to a database over the cell network and we access the information from a web portal.
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https://www.wilsonsignalbooster.com/
From what you're saying it'll probably take a custom solution. I'd hazard a guess at a high-gain directional antenna on the roof (to get connection with the cell network) with omni-directional repeaters to cover the yard
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^^^^ this is exactly what you want.
Radio waves are not a new thing and equipment exists to handle it.
I definitely recommend a professional analysis and not buying random low cost stuff you can google.
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Some companies around here will install a booster on every vehicle in their fleet.
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@flaxking said in Cell signal boost in area with limited connectivity ...:
Some companies around here will install a booster on every vehicle in their fleet.
That's a really good idea. I hadn't even considered it from that perspective. I'm going to look into this possibility.
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@BraswellJay said in Cell signal boost in area with limited connectivity ...:
@flaxking said in Cell signal boost in area with limited connectivity ...:
Some companies around here will install a booster on every vehicle in their fleet.
That's a really good idea. I hadn't even considered it from that perspective. I'm going to look into this possibility.
the site linked above sells units for each truck.
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we use this system everywhere https://cel-fi.com/quatra4000/ They have a nice management interface too.
They are not self install and they will do a site survey.
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@JaredBusch said in Cell signal boost in area with limited connectivity ...:
^^^^ this is exactly what you want.
Radio waves are not a new thing and equipment exists to handle it.
I definitely recommend a professional analysis and not buying random low cost stuff you can google.
Yes, you definitely want someone that can do a site survey.
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I know this is the "don't do this but do something else" answer, but just in case you've not thought of it, some places use satellite phones for this purpose.
