Four WiFi design tips for smart buildings
In order to achieve connectivity, performance, and security,
smart building network planners must be careful when planning their wireless
architecture.
Owners and operators seeking to deploy wireless IoT devices
and sensors in their properties want to pay close attention to their needs from
the perspective of WiFi connectivity, performance, and security. As the number
of wireless devices, types, and use cases continues to increase, the weaknesses
of the existing WiFi deployment architecture are exposed. Let's take a look at
four ways to support WiFi deployment in modern smart buildings to better
support the growing wireless needs of today's smart buildings.
1. Truly comprehensive coverage
Early deployments of built-in WiFi were mainly concentrated
in areas where occupants tended to gather. Public places include lobbies,
meeting rooms and other shared spaces. In many cases, many parts of a building
may have been excluded from wireless coverage because the likelihood of someone
needing a network connection in these locations is low.
However, due to the widespread use of wireless IoT sensors
and the widespread use of facilities equipped with mobile devices, physical
security and other building management teams now require complete global
coverage and extend to outdoor areas. This includes previously excluded
locations such as elevator shafts, maintenance rooms, roofs, and parking lots.
2. Wiring, PoE and multi-gigabit switching
From a physical layer perspective, twisted-pair cabling may
need to be upgraded to take full advantage of modern WiFi 6 and 6E
technologies. Category 5e cabling is still common in buildings more than 10
years old. When using Cat 5e cabling to connect WiFi 6 and 6E access points
(APs) to the switch, the transmission and reception speed on the cabling can
reach up to 1 Gbit/sec.
However, the bandwidth capacity of the latest generation of
wireless APs may exceed 1 Gbit/sec. In order to get the maximum performance
from the new WiFi deployment, the cabling should be upgraded to category 6A or
higher cabling. This allows the switch to be upgraded to a switch using
multi-gigabit Ethernet technology, which transfers data from the AP to the
wired LAN at 2.5 or 5 Gbits/sec. This eliminates potential network bandwidth
bottlenecks that can negatively affect overall network performance.
In addition, as Power over Ethernet (PoE) devices become
more complex, they often require more power to operate. Older twisted-pair
cables were not designed to provide more than 30 watts of maximum power over a
distance of 100 meters. However, many of the latest WiFi APs,
ultra-high-definition (UHD) surveillance cameras, and certain IoT sensors
require up to 90 watts of PoE transmission. Therefore, be sure to evaluate your
existing wiring to ensure that it can support the PoE requirements of each
connected device. If not, a new cable must be pulled out to ensure safe
transmission of power at a higher wattage.
3. Antenna selection
Depending on the internal or external environment of the
building or campus, such as standard office spaces, atriums,
maintenance/engineering floors, parking lots or outdoor public areas, choosing
the right WiFi antenna is an important consideration. Most enterprise-level APs
can buy built-in antennas or BNC connectors to connect to the antenna of your
choice. WiFi access points with built-in antennas are designed for typical
office space deployments, including physical obstacles such as dry walls,
partition barriers, office-grade doors, and glass. For areas containing
concrete or plaster walls, large metal machines, or WiFi signals that must
propagate in a specific direction, antenna styles such as Yagi, panel, and
parabola may be better choices for coverage and performance.
4. Secure micro-segmentation
Strict WiFi access control must be implemented to specify
which devices on the wireless network can communicate with other devices.
Low-cost wireless IoT devices and sensors are notorious for having outdated and
insecure firmware. The micro-segmentation in many wireless LAN architectures
addresses this risk by identifying specific devices/sensors and dynamically
applying security access policies to these devices. If a malware outbreak
occurs, the infected devices in this segment will be isolated to a small part
of the entire network, thereby limiting the ability of malware to spread.
