• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer
ERN: Emerging Researchers National Conference in STEM

ERN: Emerging Researchers National Conference in STEM

  • About
    • About AAAS
    • About the NSF
    • About the Conference
    • Partners/Supporters
    • Project Team
  • Conference
  • Abstracts
    • Undergraduate Abstract Locator
    • Graduate Abstract Locator
    • Abstract Submission Process
    • Presentation Schedules
    • Abstract Submission Guidelines
    • Presentation Guidelines
  • Travel Awards
  • Resources
    • Award Winners
    • Code of Conduct-AAAS Meetings
    • Code of Conduct-ERN Conference
    • Conference Agenda
    • Conference Materials
    • Conference Program Books
    • ERN Photo Galleries
    • Events | Opportunities
    • Exhibitor Info
    • HBCU-UP/CREST PI/PD Meeting
    • In the News
    • NSF Harassment Policy
    • Plenary Session Videos
    • Professional Development
    • Science Careers Handbook
    • Additional Resources
    • Archives
  • Engage
    • Webinars
    • ERN 10-Year Anniversary Videos
    • Plenary Session Videos
  • Contact Us
  • Login

A Solar Powered Portable Wifi Hotspot

Undergraduate #113
Discipline: Technology and Engineering
Subcategory: Electrical Engineering

Austin Koehn - Garden City Community College


In today’s highly connected world, a reliable internet connection while on the move can be a necessity. There are many ways to connect to the internet, but most are on a large scale involving wired connections and access to 120 volt power. Here we describe a backpack containing a mobile wifi hotspot that can be powered by a lightweight lithium-ion battery and charged by a polycrystalline solar panel that can be stowed in the backpack or powered and charged via connection to an electrical outlet. The backpack can connect to mobile networks through a cellular device mobile hotspot and then broadcast wifi through a wireless router. The backpack has a wifi connectivity range in excess of 7 meters and can store enough energy for over three hours use for multiple network users. It can be charged quickly through connection to an electrical outlet or over a number of hours via the solar panel. This design offers a larger number of users access to the network than a typical cellular hotspot, a mobile battery to charge devices, and a solar panel for extended usage away from electricity. In the future, the next step for this design is to make the setup more convenient and power storage more efficient.

Funder Acknowledgement(s): Garden City Community College

Faculty Advisor: William Freisen, william.freisen@gcccksu.edu

Role: I did the research on the parts to use, designed, and built the design.

Sidebar

Abstract Locators

  • Undergraduate Abstract Locator
  • Graduate Abstract Locator

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under Grant No. DUE-1930047. Any opinions, findings, interpretations, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of its authors and do not represent the views of the AAAS Board of Directors, the Council of AAAS, AAAS’ membership or the National Science Foundation.

AAAS

1200 New York Ave, NW
Washington,DC 20005
202-326-6400
Contact Us
About Us

  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

The World’s Largest General Scientific Society

Useful Links

  • Membership
  • Careers at AAAS
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Focus Areas

  • Science Education
  • Science Diplomacy
  • Public Engagement
  • Careers in STEM

Focus Areas

  • Shaping Science Policy
  • Advocacy for Evidence
  • R&D Budget Analysis
  • Human Rights, Ethics & Law

© 2023 American Association for the Advancement of Science