Low power cellular stations to connect villages

Friday, 12 February 2010, 23:51 IST
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Low power cellular stations to connect villages
Bangalore: Cellular base stations that consume less power may be the perfect solution for cellular networks to reach every corner of the country. Telecom firm VNL has developed cellular stations that use only about 50 to 120 watts of power, which is low enough to be powered using solar cells and battery. Apart from having low power consumptions, the cellular stations can also be made self contained wireless units, which need not be connected to a grid that will be very useful in remote places, reports Thinkdigit. A single such station would be capable of handling hundreds of users, and needs just two people to set it up. The station can be assembled and mounted on a roof top in the short span of six hours. The traditional systems not only need a lot of power to operate with the help of a power grid, but also more investment is required. Using these systems, customers have to spend as much as 250 to 300 per month on average to gain revenue, which is tough in rural areas, hence they are reluctant to give coverage in these regions. VNL says that its system requires only 90 to 100 per month per person on average from their customers to make a profit. Currently nearly 50 such stations have been deployed in villages in Rajasthan and there are plans to introduce the technology in Africa also.

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