Developing and Deploying Multihop Wireless Networks for Low-Income Communities

We are architecting and deploying a multi-hop wireless network in one of Houston’s most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. The objective of this network is to empower under-resourced communities with access to technology and educational and work-at-home tools. Here, we present the societal objectives of the network, describe the joint technical and economic objectives that drive its architecture, and discuss future deployment, performance, and research challenges. I. SOCIETAL OBJECTIVES In many homes across the United States, children, youth, and their families have access to the world’s information-technology resources at their fingertips, while in low-income communities, access to technology and the opportunities it provides are often limited to brief periods of computer use and Internet access at school or at the public library [1]. Technology for All (TFA)1 addresses the disparity of opportunity that exists in our cities’ low-income neighborhoods through the tools of technology. By working with local community-based organizations, corporations, foundations, technology providers and public entities, TFA creates educational, economic and personal opportunities for low-income persons and the communities in which they