WHY IS IT IMPORTANT THAT MY WIFI SYSTEM IS SPECIALLY SUITABLE FOR BUSES?

If a bus company decides to install WIFI, be it for internal company use or as a passenger service, it will have to analyze several factors that influence the efficiency, management and efficiency of the network. In this regard, the choice of router is crucial and several aspects related to the hardware must be taken into account. Where will it be placed? What are the needs of the environment? And with regard to the software: is there a moving environment? Am I going to offer the service to multiple users at the same time?

SELECT THE ROUTER HARDWARE. WHERE DO I INSTALL IT?

The first questions to ask yourself before choosing a router are: what am I going to use it for? In which environment will I install it?

The following three examples show how the choice of physical device (hardware) affects network functionality.

• An industrial company with a harsh weather environment that needs Wi-Fi routers to enable mobile communications: In this case, devices are needed that have a high degree of physical protection and sealing to prevent internal damage from dust, water or loose particles , that is, certified protection IP65 or IP66.
• A company that needs to install Wi-Fi routers in remote areas to enable communication, for example near roads or power stations in the mountains: in this case, the Wi-Fi routers must be able to operate at a wide variety of temperatures, i.e. both at high as at low temperatures
• A company that installs Wi-Fi routers in high-speed trains needs hardware that is able to permanently maintain the connection to the mobile data network, without the high speeds interfering.

SPECIFIC HARDWARE CRITERIA FOR THE BUS SECTOR

These were just examples of how the environment where the devices are installed influences their choice. Similarly, if a bus company decides to install Wi-Fi routers in its fleet to offer this service to its passengers, it must ensure that the routers chosen meet the requirements of the environment in terms of hardware:

• It must be a system with an electromagnetic compatibility certificate to be installed in vehicles.
• It must be made with no movable parts or soldering in the electronics that could be damaged by the vibrations and movement of the bus.
• It should offer the possibility to extend the antennas for data and wifi so that they can be placed where they function best.

 Do I need a specific software for the bus¿

So far we've discussed how the choice of router affects hardware when we install it on a bus, but what about the software? Are we also bound by the form of use when choosing this? The answer is yes.

Like any software, it must be specific to the industry/use it is intended for. For example, an application for the management of a large company must meet different requirements than those of a small or medium-sized company or that of a wholesaler must meet different requirements than those of a company specializing in projects.

The bus sector, like any other sector, has specific software needs when it comes to providing a WiFi service and this is related to 2 factors:

1) It is a mobile environment, not a static one.

2) It is necessary to provide WiFi service to multiple users at the same time.

As we can see, our system's software must accommodate both factors if we want to cover our needs. This means that we can manage all passenger connections to our system, so that we are in control of our network owned, not to mention, by the company.

Why NOT choose a solution that is not intended for the transport of travelers?

Choosing a Wi-Fi solution that is NOT intended for the bus and passenger transport environment will inevitably lead to a poorer service for the passenger, both because the reception (coverage) and data connectivity in a moving environment will be of poorer quality, as well as due to the absence of the network configuration and management functions by the transport company.

The absence of these leads to connections with excessive bandwidth for some passengers and insufficient bandwidth for other passengers, data traffic through websites that are not suitable for public use, and massive data usage that disrupts our monthly data volume, which is contracted with the telephone network provider. In short: we generate a negative impression of the WiFi service and the transport company's own brand is associated with it.