AT&T is preparing to launch the Internet on power lines

    AT&T announced the start of a trial of a data transmission project using power lines. Representatives of the company are convinced that the project called AirGig will allow providing high-speed multi-gigabit Internet with much lower costs and over a larger area. / Flickr / Bruce Guenter / CC Power cables will serve as bridges for Internet traffic running between the cellular towers that organize 4G / LTE and 5G networks. According to company representatives, the technology will be useful for people living away from megacities, for example, on farms or in mountain towns. Moreover, it is much simpler to conduct such an Internet - you do not need to dig roads and trenches for laying cables.





    Telecommunications operators have been trying to launch such services for several years, but they have always faced a serious limitation - low data transfer speed. AT&T solved the problem by adding low-cost wireless plastic repeaters to the system, which will achieve speeds of several gigabits.


    The principle of operation of the AirGig solution is presented in this patent , issued in October 2015. It describes the process of transmitting information over power lines at a frequency of 30 GHz to 300 GHz.

    From US9154966B2, the

    Distributed Antenna System includes several base stations (504) located on poles that can independently provide network connectivity for mobile devices (522, 524), as well as broadcast the signal to antennas (512, 514) located on adjacent poles.

    To transmit a signal via power cables, the matching device (506) converts it into millimeter-wave waves and broadcasts to receivers (508), which amplify it and direct it further. Receivers also “extract” the original frequency and transmit information using antennas.

    The system can implement diversity channels when several wires are pulled between the posts. Depending on the environmental conditions, the transmission quality may decrease, so the connecting devices will be able to choose a clearer signal based on the signal-to-noise ratio or other information, such as rain sensors, weather forecasts, etc.

    AT&T says that two test networks will be launched this year .

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