Urewera National Park Wireless Network
The CRCnet Platform has been used to construct a network that connects four of the most remote schools in New Zealand. These schools are located in the Urewera National Park. The network consists of 10 backbone links providing high speed access to the schools. The network integrates with the SchoolZone system allowing the schools conencted to participate in video conferences with other schools all around New Zealand.Four of the repeaters in the network are solar-powered. Each of the solar powered sites took a team of three people a single day to build. For two of these solar sites a helicopter was required to deliver all of the equipment due to its remoteness. One of the solar sites sits on the top of a mountain and is regularly dusted with snow during the winter months of the year. The construction of this network has had significant input from the local communities involved.
This community involvement has also extended to the use of the network to support a Computers in Homes project run by local organisations. Several of the repeaters in the network also act as Access Points to provide Internet access to households in the nearby community.