Red Hook Wifi

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Georgia Bullen!georgia@opentechinstitute.org!@georgiamoon / @redhookwifi!

Creating digital networks is mostly a social process.!

Key Aspects: Social & Technical Infrastructure !

•  Main network anchors are trusted community organizations.!

•  Solid relationship with technical support provider from outside of the community.!

•  Community-led design process emphasizes local needs and enhances engagement.!

•  Rapid prototyping of applications designed for the local area network. !

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Technology!

•  Ubiquiti Routers!–  Nanostation!–  Picostation!

•  Commotion!–  Ad Hoc Network Platform!–  OpenWRT!–  OLSRd Routing Protocol!

!!!!!https://code.commotionwireless.net/projects/commotion/wiki/Newbie_How_It_Works !

Mesh networks are distributed, non-centralized, and self-healing.!

Hub  and  Spoke  Network   Mesh  Network  

February 2012 – 1st Mesh Node!WAP + Internet Gateway!

March 2012 – 2nd Mesh Node !Out of Range of Node #1, No Internet Gateway!Local Server with applications!

Community Collaborative Design Workshops, Photo: Becky Kazansky!

A resident working with Tidepools, a local Mapping Application, Photo: Becky Kazansky!

Local Application Development!

Red Hook Initiative: !Recovery & Communication Hub!

RHI Status!

February 2013!

February 2013!

2013  

Site Surveys!

Businesses   Non-­‐Profits   Schools   Parks   ExisAng/  Agreed  to  host  

Potential Partners!

Broadband Adoption!FCC Form 477 Data !NYC Department of City Planning PLUTO Data!NYC Department of City Planning Buildings Data !

October 2013!

August 2013!

http://redhookwifi.org! powered by Tidepools (http://tidepools.org)!

Lessons Learned!

•  Social relationships are paramount.!!•  The most challenging investment is in the initial organizing

and design phase before any value is realized. !!•  Community-designed applications add value to a local

network, even at a small scale. !!•  Having relationships and anchor wireless nodes in place prior

to a disaster facilitates rapid network deployment through: !–  Already-established relationships with key community

stakeholders.!–  A heightened level of technological literacy in the community.!–  Pre-positioned wireless network equipment in the neighborhood.!

What’s Next?!

sensors  

apps  

texting  

outreach  

Additional Materials!

Cost of the Network!

•  Donated labor from local residents and technologist. !•  Institutional support from RHI and OTI. !•  Hardware (~$50 to ~$85 each router). !•  Installation (3-5 work hours for two people per site). !•  Bandwidth (donated by RHI, Brooklyn Fiber, and FEMA). !•  Training program for local residents to maintain and expand

network as part of a municipal employment program. !

Modular mesh wireless tile

The bandwidth delivered to the end user can be up to 50 Mbps, but is dependent on available bandwidth at the gateway connection. There are various models for determining how many users can share a given connection. Each user-facing access point can support up to 25 simultaneous connections, but speed will depend on available bandwidth at the gateway, interference, and other factors. Engineering study is required to determine the technical feasibility of each tile. Community participation is key in determining rooftop anchor sites and pilot "early adopter" candidates.

(1 unit) Internet GatewayConnection to the global Internet or point of presence(point-to-point wireless or fiber-optic backhaul, white space device, etc.)

(25 to 100 units) User-facing access points Omnidirectional mesh wireless nodes mounted on lightpoles, building exteriors, rooftops, or windows. Hardware = approximately $25,000

Installation labor = approximately $75,000 to $150,000

1/2 to 3/4 mile

(5 to 10 units) Gateway distribution layerPoint-to-point or -multipoint directional mesh wireless nodes.

Wired connection

Wireless connection

People in or next to the tile area can extend the network by installing their own routers.

More Information!

http://redhookwifi.org!http://rhidigitalstewards.wordpress.com!http://oti.newamerica.net!http://commotionwireless.net!http://commotionwireless.net/tags/red-hook!http://tidepools.co!!