How to Optimize Your Industrial Wireless Radio: 6 Ways

Industrial wireless radios and communication provide a competitive edge to managers and plant-based workers to increase their marketing and production units. If the communication infrastructure inside the business is effective and flawless, it is bound to grow at an increasing rate. 

Effective communication via wireless radio also leads to increased productivity, reliability, availability, and maintenance. If you are looking for some tips to optimize your industrial wireless radio, this guide can help you out

1. Use 5 GHz Channels

To overcome channel saturation, start by using 5 GHz channels. In a standard wi-fi communication system, all the radios are set to the same channel settings. So you’ll have to consider all radio devices in the area you are working in.

You also need to take into account other forms of communication, such as Bluetooth, ZigBee, and microwaves. If a channel is saturated, switch over to a less saturated channel.

For example, a 2.4 GHz channel has much higher chances of being saturated. But a 5 GHz frequency has a wider range of channels, which means less overlapping. So in an industrial setting, employing a 5 GHz channel with a DFS setting will let you access the most glitch-free communication channel.

2. Scientific Distance Calculation

A high 802.11 wireless transmission rate requires a strong radio signal. If the signal strength is weak, the communication will be low quality or may even get disconnected.

There are many ways to improve your signal reach, for example, installing high-gain antennas or using a lower frequency. You can use a wireless distance calculator to calculate the distance of communication and the bandwidth requirement.

This calculation method provides you with a theoretical model of the area you shall be working on, and you can confirm the accuracy of the model by an on-site inspection.

3. Maximize Link Uptime

Even when you have employed an efficient communication system with strong signals, a lot of other factors still need to be considered. Setup related problems like Hidden Nodes can lead to problems in connection even if your network is designed well.

To combat this problem, you can use wireless redundancy technologies like dual RF redundancy, RSTP, or Moxa’s Aerolink to recover any failures.

4. Achieve Sufficient AP Coverage

Wireless APs have limited coverage. So if you want wireless clients to communicate smoothly, you’ll need to employ a coverage overlap. You may use a site planning software like AirMagnet to simulate a virtual map. This will help you to visualize the AP coverage in your area and you can even plan the number of APs you’ll need.

Wireless coverage can also be altered by using different types of antennas but most users do not take this point into consideration. Most 802.11 based antennas are passive, meaning they do not amplify any signal strength.

So the only way you’ll be able to amplify the signal is by compressing the radiation pattern generated by the antenna’s signals. If you switch to a high-gain antenna, make sure to not install it too high. If it is installed too high up, it will not be able to catch signals sufficiently to reach devices on the ground level.

5. Optimize Roaming Performance

You need to install an advanced wireless roaming technology that achieves millisecond-level roaming break time. There are set standards like 802.11 that are able to optimize the roaming performance, but most wireless M2M vendors like to depend on their own roaming technology.

On the other hand, an advanced roaming technology will enable the client to search for a better AP signal when the current one is weak. Configuration of the correct roaming threshold parameter is very important here.

For example, Moxa’s Turbo Roaming supports adjustable roaming parameters that give you the flexibility to optimize the roaming parameters.

6. Handheld Device Interoperability

Nowadays, small devices like smartphones and tablets are used widely in industries. Even though each company uses a different OS like Android, IOS, or Windows), they all have one feature in common- they communicate well with the factory APs.

Having the logo of Wifi Alliance helps to ensure that the device will work well in terms of interoperability.

Over to You…

These were 6 tips and tricks to optimize your industrial wireless radio. We hope this list helps you to level up your communication game and take your marketing to greater heights!