Designing and Implementing an Antenna on ESP32 for Mesh Network Internet Access and Offline File Transfer.
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This project develops a long-range wireless communication system for remote or disaster-stricken areas, utilizing ESP32-based mesh networks with a custom high-gain helical antenna. The antenna, optimized for the 2.4 GHz band through MATLAB and ANSYS HFSS simulations, was integrated with ESP32-WROOM-32UE modules. The system, programmed with ESP-IDF, supports offline file transfers via FTP and HTTP, with encryption and authentication for security. While the built-in PCB antenna of the ESP32 typically provides a limited range of about 50 meters under line-of-sight (LOS) conditions, the custom helical antenna extended the communication range to 1.2 km in LOS and 400 meters in non-line-of-sight (NLOS) environments. The mesh network demonstrated reliable, secure, and efficient data exchange in multi-node configurations without internet access. This system offers a scalable solution for resilient wireless communication in disaster response, rural areas, field research, and IoT applications.
