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Repeaters

A repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it at a higher level or power to extend the range of the signal. It operates at the physical layer of the OSI model and regenerates signals without interpreting the data. Repeaters are used to connect network segments that exceed the maximum allowed distance and amplify signals for transcontinental cables, radio communications, broadcasting and more. They function by reshaping, amplifying and retiming signals while preserving the integrity of the data transmission.

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93 views4 pages

Repeaters

A repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it at a higher level or power to extend the range of the signal. It operates at the physical layer of the OSI model and regenerates signals without interpreting the data. Repeaters are used to connect network segments that exceed the maximum allowed distance and amplify signals for transcontinental cables, radio communications, broadcasting and more. They function by reshaping, amplifying and retiming signals while preserving the integrity of the data transmission.

Uploaded by

tunku90
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© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Definition

A wireless repeater.

A repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it at a higher level
and/or higher power, or onto the other side of an obstruction, so that the signal can cover longer
distances.

Network repeaters regenerate incoming electrical, wireless or optical signals. With physical
media like Ethernet or Wi-Fi, data transmissions can only span a limited distance before the
quality of the signal degrades. Repeaters attempt to preserve signal integrity and extend the
distance over which data can safely travel.

Description

The term "repeater" originated with telegraphy and referred to an electromechanical device
used to regenerate telegraph signals. Use of the term has continued in telephony and data
communications.

In telecommunication, the term repeater has the following standardized meanings:

1. An analog device that amplifies an input signal regardless of its nature (analog or
digital).
2. A digital device that amplifies, reshapes, retimes, or performs a combination of any of
these functions on a digital input signal for retransmission.[1]

Because repeaters work with the actual physical signal, and do not attempt to interpret the data
being transmitted, they operate on the Physical layer, the first layer of the OSI model.
Digipeater

A "digipeater" is a blend meaning "digital repeater", particularly used in amateur radio. Store
and forward digipeaters generally receive a packet radio transmission and then retransmit it on
the same frequency, unlike repeaters that receive on one and transmit on another frequency.

Usage

 Used in transcontinental and submarine communications cables, because the


attenuation (signal loss) over such distances would be unacceptable without them.
Repeaters are used in both copper-wire cables carrying electrical signals, and in fiber
optics carrying light.
 Used in radio communication services. Radio repeaters often transmit and receive on
different frequencies. A special subgroup of those repeaters is those used in amateur
radio.
 Used extensively in broadcasting, where they are known as translators, boosters or TV
relay transmitters.
 When providing a point-to-point telecom link using radio beyond line of sight, one uses
repeaters in a microwave radio relay. A reflector, often on a mountaintop, that relays
such signals around an obstacle, is called a passive repeater or Passive Radio Link
Deflection. A microwave repeater in a communications satellite is called a transponder.
 In optical communications the term repeater is used to describe a piece of equipment
that receives an optical signal, converts that signal into an electrical one, regenerates it,
and then retransmits an optical signal. Since such a device converts the optical signal
into an electrical one, and then back to an optical signal, they are often known as
Optical-Electrical-Optical (OEO) repeaters.
 Before the invention of electronic amplifiers, mechanically coupled carbon microphones
were used as amplifiers in telephone repeaters. The invention of the audion tube made
transcontinental telephony practical. In the 1930s vacuum tube repeaters using hybrid
coils became commonplace, allowing the use of thinner wires. In the 1950s negative
impedance gain devices were more popular, and a transistorized version called the E6
repeater was the final major type used in the Bell System before the low cost of digital
transmission made all voiceband repeaters obsolete. Frequency frogging repeaters were
commonplace in frequency-division multiplexing systems from the middle to late 20th
century.
Repeaters are physical hardware devices that have a primary function to regenerate the
electrical signal by:

 Reshaping the waveform


 Amplifying the waveform
 Retiming the signal

Purpose of a Repeater

The purpose of a repeater is to extend the LAN Segment beyond its physical limits as defined
by the Physical Layer's Standards (e.g. Ethernet is 500m for 10Base5). A LAN Segment is a
logical path such as the logical bus used by all 802.3 Ethernet types. A LAN Segment is given
an identification number called a Segment Number or Network Number to differentiate it from
other segments.

Typically, repeaters are used to connect 2 physically close buildings together that are too far
apart to just extend the segment. Can be used to connect floors of a building together that
would surpass the maximum allowable segment length. Note: for large extensions as in the
above example, 2 Repeaters are required. For shorter extensions, only 1 Repeater may be
required.
Repeater's OSI Operating Layer

Repeaters operate at the OSI Model Physical Layer.

Repeater's Segment to Segment Characteristics

Repeaters do not "de-segment" a network. All traffic that appears on one side of the repeater
appears on both sides. Repeaters handle only the electrical and physical characteristics of the
signal.

Repeaters work only on the same type of Physical Layer: Ethernet to Ethernet or Token Ring to
Token Ring. They can connect 10Base5 to 10BaseT because they both use the same 802.3
MAC layer.

You can run into problems connecting 1Base5 to 10BaseT with the transfer rate (1 Mbps vs. 10
Mbps). A repeater cannot connect Token Ring to Ethernet because the Physical Layer is
different for each.

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