Aiming a Directional Antenna for the Cellular Gateway

How to aim a directional antenna for a GC31-E a cellular gateway.

The GC31-E is compatible with external LTE antennas using N-type connectors. Verkada offers the ACC-ANT-10 Outdoor Directional Antenna, which can easily replace the omnidirectional antennas included with the gateway. A directional antenna can improve signal strength on the GC31-E when pointed toward the connected cell tower.

Aiming a directional antenna

To aim a directional antenna at the correct cell tower, we need to get the azimuth angle between the gateway and the cell tower.

Required. Before you begin, Install the GC31-E and set up the device in Verkada Command. Ensure the gateway is online for at least 5 minutes before proceeding.

1

In Verkada Command, go to All Products > Gateways .

2

Select the GC31-E that will connect to the directional antenna.

3

Hover over the GC31-E to display the azimuth angle.

4

Open the compass app on a mobile phone and rotate the phone until the azimuth angle is reached. This will be the direction to point the antenna for maximum gain.

5

For optimal performance, mount the directional antenna high up on a pole with a clearer line of sight toward the cell tower.

Cell tower location is obtained from a combination of public databases, such as OpenCelliD. As a result, the reported azimuth angle between the tower and gateway is dependent on the accuracy of the database.

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Need more help? Contact Verkada Support.