User's Manual

CHAPTER 7
REPEATING FEATURES
Revised: 23 Jan 08 7-1 EST P/N AA107G
To increase the wireless network’s area of coverage for
both indoor and outdoor applications, the ESTeem 195Eg
utilizes a custom repeating feature that allows increased
coverage areas without the added expense of hard cabling
or adding an additional point to point radio link.
With a conventional IEEE 802.11g or 802.11b Access
Point (AP) network, all of the APs have to be interfaced to
a common network either by hardwire, see Figure 1, or a
separate, dedicated RF backbone. The Model 195Eg can
create this RF backbone, bridge Ethernet networks connected to the wired Ethernet port and provide the wireless canopy for 802.11
clients simultaneously.
When programmed in any of the three Access Point (AP) Repeater Modes, the Model 195Eg will create a wireless network with
other Model 195Eg units in radio range that are programmed in the AP Repeater Peer table during setup. This feature adds the
increased functionality of repeaters to the typical Ethernet Bridge configuration.
ESTEEM MESH NETWORK
One of the most powerful features of the AP Repeater
Mode is the ability to input multiple communication
routes and designate the priority for each of these routes
to create a wireless Mesh network. The ESTeem Model
195Eg will automatically change communication routes in
the network if a route has failed. The new route will be
based upon the priority level set during configuration.
This wireless Meshing technology allows the RF network
to “self-heal” if any of the communication paths fail.
The routing priority is manually set during the
configuration of the 195Eg. A manual path configuration
is far superior to standard “self-discovery” networks,
because you have direct control over the best RF paths
and can easily identify any failed routes for easy
troubleshooting. For example, Figure 2 shows a typical
wireless Ethernet system used in the Water/Waste Water
Industry. The problem with a standard “self-discovery”
Mesh network is the selection of routes. Notice that the
communication between the Water Plant (Site A) and
Pump Site D has a marginal link, but it is the most direct
route between the Ethernet devices.
This scenario poses the question, which path will the network select? The ESTeem Mesh Network takes out the guessing games by
allowing the user to select and prioritize all communication routes in the system. In our example we would want the primary link to
go through Tank B (Repeater) and use the direct link only if this primary link fails. The following sections will show how this
completed.
Configuration
The configuration of the repeater paths is completed during setup of the Access Point modes. All three Access Point modes support
repeating and Meshing features. Figure 3 shows an example repeater peer table from the setup menus. For an ESTeem 195Eg to
communicate with another ESTeem 195Eg, Yes must be selected at the “Enable Repeater Capability.” Next, the Wireless LAN
(WLAN) MAC address of each Model 195Eg that will have direct communications must be added to the Repeater Peer List.
Figure 1: Conventional Access Point Diagram
Figure 2: Small Mesh Network Diagram