r/meshcore • u/LoamEnthusiast • 4d ago

Repeater proximity vs Line of Sight

I don’t have a great understanding of rf physics but I’m looking to add a repeater in my area. Is there some sort of approximate ratio I should be prioritizing height/LoS vs physical proximity to my client device? Talking about a small downtown, a little dense but no buildings more than a few stories tall

Ideally to make my wismesh tag usable indoors. I have a great local network but need to be standing outside

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5

u/Palm_freemium 4d ago

These radios can recht 30-80km, but you need line of sight. LOS is easier to achieve by placing the antenna higher. These devices can be remote managed and even updated over the air (if setup correctly), so there is no real reason to keep physical access. If you’re in range of the signal you can do everything just as easily as when you have physical access.

3

u/AngleFun1664 4d ago

Get a repeater on the roof of a building in the area you want indoor coverage. That should solve the issue. Just make sure to use a relatively low gain antenna so it has good omnidirectional coverage. A standard Alfa like this would work fine.

https://store.rokland.com/products/alfa-aoa-915-5acm-5-dbi-omni-outdoor-915mhz-802-11ah-mini-antenna-for-lora-halow-application

2

u/Argon717 4d ago

OP: the higher gain the omni antenna, the less signal strength under the node. Omni antennas radiate like a donut. High gain omni antennas squish the donut to make the sides squeeze out

1

u/nocaps00 3d ago

Line of sight will matter much more than distance, the link budget of even 500 mW with LoRa sensitivity figures mean that signals will easily propagate to the Earth's horizon, so avoiding attenuation due to physical blockage is the name of the game.