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Coffee Can Wifi

This is how I made a usb cantenna with a coffee can. Simple and effective enough to gain 1 or 2 bars. Sorry bout the cr@ppy pics.

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Step 1Materials & Tools

Items needed:

11.5oz coffee can
Usb Wifi Adapter w/ or w/o usb cradle
Metal hanger

Tools needed:

Razor knife to cut can with. I'm not blessed with a dremel. :(
Sharpie
Ruler
Needle nose pliers and/or wire cutters
Duct tape because it has a light and a dark side

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6 comments

209

Mar 25, 2009. 7:41 PM

Phil B says:

I have a WiFi card for a PCMCIA slot. What would you do to adapt this basic antenna for use with my card? I went for decades without a Dremel. I thought I would never use one. Then I inherited the one belonging to my father-in-law after he died. I am amazed at how much I use it. See my Instructable on enlarging the arbor hole in a saw blade so it fits a Sawsmith radial arm saw. Let family and friends know you would like to save cash gifts until you can buy one.

Mar 27, 2009. 1:30 AMSlinkyfied (author) says:

I don't think this cantenna design would be suitable for a pcmcia type card, but... there's always a 'but'... I've googled it and found a 'corner antenna' involving a slim cd case, library card, some tinfoil, and glue. If that type of antenna works, I guess one could potentially use other common types (parabolic) with some success, also. Another idea I had was wrapping some copper wire around the end of the card a few times and leaving the end up as a sort of dipole. I'm new to antenna building/design, so don't take my word as gospel, but if you try anything that works, spread the word. Good luck to you!

209

Mar 27, 2009. 4:15 AM

Phil B says:

Thanks for the reply and the information.

Aug 13, 2011. 7:56 AMdaiatlus79 says:

if you can open the end casing on the card, there MAY be a hidden pigtail connector. if there is, you could get the corresponding pigtail connector for your card, make a hole to keep it exposed, and then use a google search to identify the manner of pigtail you need. then its a simple matter of hitting up a local shop or online shop or ebay to find it!