University of Colorado at Boulder WiLDNet Testbed

Four 5.8 GHz band transceivers at the University of Colorado at Boulder (UCB) were first operated as a wide area local area network (WLAN) in April of 2017. The purpose of this WLAN is to serve as a testbed for installations to be made in the developing world as a part of the IEEE Smart Village program. The configuration of the components is discussed in detail. The testbed is self-powered by solar micro-grids that are present at each node. Evidently, the micro-grids are designed for fail-safe 24/7 operation. Test data is presented on the operation of the network when used to provide information on demand from a central server to any of the remote stations. The network provides continuous data on the operation of the micro-grids including their innovative energy storage systems (ESSs) that are based on lithium ferro-phosphate battery technology. This test data resembles that of a smart system monitoring multiple islanded micro-grids. Plans for expanding the testbed to include a mobile station as well as longer distance arms are also presented. A primary purpose of the testbed is to determine the suitability of components, power levels and protocols for application of wireless LANs (WLANS) in remote areas. Discussion of what the testbed test results say about component applicability conclude the paper.